Donna Jay is a safe bet for good kinky scenes
The Doors We Open starts with a bang. Freshly divorced, Eloise treats herself to a session at Libellule’s, to explore her desires with both kinky sex and women. After a fantastic introduction to this new world by the super hot Savannah, Eloise can’t get her out of her mind. And because that would be too simple a plot, the next time Eloise sees her, she realizes that Savannah is also Ms Sloane, her daughter’s new soccer coach.
I love kink when it’s well-written and Donna Jay is a safe bet on that front. As I’ve stated before, we don’t have the same sense of humour and some of the funny stuff fell flat for me but that’s a very personal thing, and not enough to keep me away from the author’s books. The first book in this series – The Secrets We Keep – is my favourite book by Donna Jay and I enjoyed the second one – The People We Trust – a lot too so I had to read this third one. And I had a really good time with it.
Besides the kinky scenes, I liked the relationship between Eloise and her children very much, especially with her daughter Mackenzie. It’s in these moments, with her children, with her ex, that the character shows the most nuance, the complexities of parenting, of standing for one’s own and for one’s kids. Navigating the balance between keeping them safe and giving them space to think for themselves.
The romance works well too, I enjoyed the contrast between a very experienced, slightly younger woman and one who is finally allowing herself to be who she wants to be, albeit later in life. Both have baggage and want to give a relationship a chance in a way that is new to both of them. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it’s not, especially when one of the people involved is a sex worker, which brings a whole set of delicate situations to negociate. Respect and communication are key and – it bears repeating – sexy.
I have a couple of issues (some parts are too black and white, some are a bit rushed, and why invent a story about how they met when it would be very easy to say Savannah is Mackenzie’s soccer coach?) but all in all, this was an enjoyable read. And I love that it’s set in New Zealand, as usual, and that I get to travel and discover places and food and habits that are not familiar to me. 3.5 stars.
