Summary

Overall this is a superb story – I enjoyed reading it. It’s sexy, very well written and professionally produced. I really liked the way the characters had been created and enjoyed the slow build of the plot, which the story definitely needed. For me personally, the only issue came from a few uncomfortable moments where the main character seemed to be in distress, yet the love interest didn’t allow her to stop. This is explained in the context of the story, however, so keep reading past that to get to the romance.

Buy “Introducing Charlotte” at Smashwords.
Affiliate Link: Buy Introducing Charlotte from Amazon

Purchasing and Versions

I was asked to review “Introducing Charlotte” by Charlotte Hains (I’ll call her “Hains” from here on to avoid confusion with the Charlotte in the story!). She gave me a code to get a review copy. The first thing to say is that Hains seems lovely. She’s very friendly and polite, making a good connection straight away. I know it’s not any indicator of the quality of the work, but it’s nice for the fans who’d like to have a bit more of a personal relationship with her.

The good news is that “Introducing Charlotte” is available from Smashwords – that means no DRM, so you can put it on your laptop, your e-reader and your phone. The bad news for those of us who own Kindles is that there doesn’t seem to be a Mobi version. I got around that by using a free online converter.

(EDIT: Introducing Charlotte is available from the Kindle store on Amazon – sorry for the misinformation!)

Affiliate Link: Buy Introducing Charlotte from Amazon

Quality of Production

Great news: the author is not an amateur.

That was definitely a plus for me, given the number of half hearted efforts I’ve read in the past from writers who had an idea but didn’t know what to do with it. There is a fully developed story here, well drawn characters, and crisp, clean writing that doesn’t get too flowery while still describing what’s going on in an interesting way. I found it really easy to read “Introducing Charlotte”, and quickly got into the story as a result.

The quality of the editing and proofreading is also worth mentioning – I only stopped 3 times because of spelling and grammar errors, which is unusual whether the book is from a small press or a big publishing house. There were a couple of other printing issues, but overall this is a high quality effort.

Buy “Introducing Charlotte” at Smashwords.
Affiliate Link: Buy Introducing Charlotte from Amazon

The Plot

It’s worth mentioning that this isn’t thinly disguised porn. Not at all. This is an erotic romance. The first half of the story definitely has a spiciness to it, but the BDSM related sex plot doesn’t even kick in until around the half way point. This might be an issue for some readers, but for me it worked, and I’ll tell you why:

“Introducing Charlotte” begins with the titular character reeling from an abusive relationship. That’s an important part of her backstory, so the idea that she would be comfortable being introduced to an alternative lifestyle straight after would be difficult to swallow. Hains knows it, and so do the other characters in the story. As a result, Charlotte’s kept safely away from that lifestyle until she’s ready to handle it.

The characters here are genuinely lovely. All of them care deeply about each other (Charlotte’s former partner is only mentioned, not seen) and Charlotte can feel safe among them. It’s one of the most endearing setups I’ve read. The love interest character introduces his lifestyle slowly, and is careful to make sure that Charlotte is comfortable with it at all times.

Which brings me to the one and only criticism that I have. On a number of occasions, Charlotte is subjected to treatment that she doesn’t enjoy. You’ll know that she doesn’t enjoy it because you’re inside her head, hearing her thoughts. That was a bit distressing for me, particularly in one of the extended scenes, where it seemed that Charlotte was being forced to do things that she really wasn’t comfortable with, and every time she protested she was ignored. Now, afterwards she decides that she was enjoying it – after all, she had a safe word that she could have used if she really didn’t want it to continue. But we were there, we heard her thoughts, and she didn’t like it.

I can’t see that Hains could have done this any other way, given the story, because a lot of the conflict would have been lost if Charlotte had embraced the lifestyle right from the start. But for me it was hard going through these scenes.

Stick with it, though, and you have a very tender love story mixed with some nice BDSM play. I actually read most of the book while on vacation, sat on a sunny beach, and it put a silly smile on my face – and a blush in my cheeks – more than once.

Affiliate Link: Buy Introducing Charlotte from Amazon

Conclusion

A sexy little erotic romance with believable characters that I’d love to meet in real life. Charlotte Hains has done a superb job with “Introducing Charlotte” and I’m looking forward to the sequel!

Buy “Introducing Charlotte” at Smashwords.

Affiliate Link

Buy Introducing Charlotte from Amazon