Sunkissed by Freya Publications

An anthology of lesbian love stories.

1997 by Rosen Trevithick

Karen owns a record store in Falmouth, Cornwall. When a gorgeous Asian woman, Anya walks in and asks her out for dinner, Karen is over joyed. Who knew that Anya was going to give Karen the shock of her life after dinner?

A nicely written story with a lot packed in to it and an extra special twist.

Five Guns Blazing by Emma Rose Millar.

Set in 1720, an action packed story that spans from London across the seas to Barbados. An exciting swashbuckling tale of deportation, gruelling plantation life and piracy on the high seas. Look out for Nathaniel Beedham, he’s not who he seems.

Excitement and thrills throughout this well penned story.

Break Away by Niamh Murphy

Sarah arranges a weekend away in St Ives, Cornwall with her married lover, Debbie. When Debbie lets Sarah down once again, Sarah and her landlady, Jen begin to get close. A startling surprise puts an end to anything romantic between them though. Will Sarah come to her senses in the end?

A nicely paced and well written story of love, lies, realization and awakening.

I Also Met You In Summer by Clare Ashton

A woman meets her future lover at a party. Unknown to her, her lover is not who she seems to be. When she catches her cheating, she hopes it is a one off. But how can she trust her again? What happens next is an unexpected turnabout of events.

A poignant story of love, hot sex, betrayal and finally justice to the two deserving it. Well written and fast paced. A lot packed in to a short story.

Spa Seduction by Kiki Archer

Anna and Josie, after being let down by their boyfriends, go for a spa break in Venice. Anna is intrigued by the spa’s owner, Sophia. When Sophia offers Anna a massage, Anna is hoping for far more from the gorgeous Sophia. But will there be more on offer?

A lovely well written hot and steamy short story.

The Darkness Within by Betty Flack

When young English Louisa is working in Cyprus, she sees a flame haired girl with pure white skin. She is intrigued by her, she can’t get her out of her mind and follows her several times before finally catching up to her. She gets far more than she bargained for though and her life is forever changed.

A haunting tale with an unusual twist. Nicely written with lovely scenic descriptions.

Signals by Sam Patterson-Sleep

One evening in a bar a woman watches the signals of two dancers on the dance floor. Watches as a dance becomes more intimate. She hadn’t known before that the two she came in with would end up being lovers. She hadn’t seen the signals. But she can go and make her acquaintance with the dancer across the room, who is giving out her own signals.

A somewhat unusual well written story.

One Weekend by Franki Morgan

When her boss wouldn’t swap her her shift and all her friends had gone away, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise when an unexpected guest books in to the hotel. Who knew that this would be one scorching, red hot, sex filled weekend?

A lovely well written story, with great characters, full of nice scenic descriptions and passion.

The Sighing Sound, The Lights Around the Shore by Toni James

Two women meet in a bar. They feel as though they know each other. After a hot encounter on the beach, they return to the bar where they had met. When one asks if they could meet again, she was given the impression they may have been lovers before and would possibly be again.

A well written mystic story of a love past, present and future.

Summer of Samantha by Melody Breyer-Grell

Set in the hot summer of 1977 in Manhattan.

Nineteen year old Maura is an operatic singer. Samantha is a graduate student. Maura has been warned off of Sam by her flatmate, because Sam is a lesbian. Maura struggles with her feelings and wants Sam badly. One night during a blackout, Maura relents.
A hot and steamy nicely written story.

Retreat by Niamh Murphy.

Grace’s personal assistant causes her more work and stress than actually not having help at all. When Grace goes to a health retreat to unwind, she turns off her phone. It’s here that she meets Alex and flirts with her at a wine tasting class. Both Grace and Alex are strong women and Grace is used to being in charge, will Grace give up control to Alex?

A nicely paced story of flirtation and control.

The Ballad of Iska and Marikit by Emma Rose Millar

Set in Antique, Philippines in 1587.

Iska and Marikit are lesbian lovers. Datu is married, but it doesn’t stop him from wanting Marikit. When Datu lies about Iska and Marikit, it sets about a chain of terrible events that will change the lives of everyone around them all, resulting in the ballad of Iska and Marikit.
A haunting legendary tale that will chill you.

The short stories in this book are widely diverse and well written by a variety of different authors. Some authors have been published before, but some are debut authors. Each and every story in this book has obviously been carefully chosen and the overall standard is very high.

As with most short story books I have my favorite stories. You will too. The one thing I will say about this book is, I think Freya has discovered some wonderful new authors. Authors that I feel will be quite prominent in lesfic in the future.

I’m finding myself reading more short stories just lately than I’ve ever done before. I’ll admit, I’ve always preferred a full length novel to short stories. However, this book is is great. Most of the stories are not too short and there is a story to get your teeth in to.

I’ll be looking out for more from Freya Publications and the authors in this book in the future.