jamiereadthis
Written on Dec 14, 2019
- ISBN10 1541409051
- ISBN13 9781541409057
- Publish Date 29 August 2017 (first published 7 May 2017)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 13 March 2021
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Tantor Media, Inc
- Edition Unabridged edition
- Format Audiobook (CD)
- Duration 7 hours and 14 minutes
- Language English
Reviews
kimbacaffeinate
Written on Jan 18, 2018
Dark, sensual and filled with erotic scenes, The Red burned my ears as I listened. You'll want headphones when listening to this sizzling hot tale. Narrated by Elizabeth Hart, Reisz introduces us to scene after scene of sexual fantasy from pure BDSM to some rather bizarre and taboo fantasies with the mysterious Malcolm. All of the scenes take place in the back of the Red Gallary on a brass bed which belonged to Mona's grandmother. The room is transformed, and Reisz vividly brings to life the scenes she creates.
I was intrigued by the mysterious man but about halfway through, I felt the stories got a little weird and didn't think this was much more than hot erotic fiction. However, the ending surprised me as Reisz tied the bed, Mona, and the past together for an exciting twist.
Elizabeth Hart really brought the story to life making both Malcolm and Mona feel genuine. Her tone and pacing lent to the story giving a smooth flow that pulled you into the story.
While I enjoyed the overall storyline, this isn't quite my cup of coffee and think I will stick to Reiz's other storylines. For fans of erotic fiction, Reisz weaves a tale that will both shock and delight. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
Melanie
Written on Sep 26, 2017
4.5 stars
I’ve been a huge fan of Tiffany Reisz since I picked up The Siren all those years ago. Ms. Reisz has an amazing writing style that always draws me in. I wouldn’t call her books humorous, but they do have humorous parts to them. She just writes characters that are so comfortable in their own skins. They are who they are and aren’t at all ashamed of their wants or needs. She does have some side characters who have insecurities that mix really well with her strong willed main characters.
In this story, Mona runs an art gallery. She promised her mother that she would do whatever was necessary to keep the gallery up and running. However, the gallery is in some financial trouble after her mother’s long illness. Mona takes her promise seriously and does whatever it takes to save the gallery. When Malcolm comes into her gallery and makes her an offer. She just has to agree to be with him, no questions. She makes this deal to fulfill her promise.
The story between Mona and Malcolm is an interesting one. Malcolm pushes Mona’s boundaries a little more with each visit. Things between them move faster than anything I would want to try, but if I were in Mona’s position, who knows. How far would you go to keep a deathbed promise to a loved one? I guess one never knows until they are in that position.
This is a very erotic tale. This story will not be for everyone. It is erotica. There are a lot of sex scenes. There is also a story woven in with the sex scenes. There is the intrigue between Mona and Malcolm. There is also the mystery about who Malcolm is and why he visits so infrequently. I loved the fantasy that goes with this story. I don’t want to go into too much detail on it, because I think it is best learned as you go along with Mona. I will just add that I loved the ending when we finally learn the mystery behind Malcolm.
I really loved this story. I love Tiffany Reisz’s storytelling style. She has an uncanny ability to push the readers boundaries. At times, I feel a little uncomfortable when how far she pushes those boundaries, but in the end, I thank her for taking me to that place. Maybe I’m a bit of a masochist when it comes to my erotica. I also really love her characters. They are just so well developed, even when we don’t much about them, like Malcolm. They are still very deep. This is not a book that I would recommend as your first Tiffany Reisz book, unless you’re a fan of erotica. I would highly recommend fans of The Original Sinners to try this one.
Narration
Elizabeth Hart did a great job with the narration of this story. I really fell into the fantasy. She really set the mood to all the different scenes, no matter what they entailed. I really felt like had the same feelings that Mona felt. I like her voices for all the characters, though there isn’t a large cast in this book. I would love to listen to her narrate another book.
**I like to thank the publisher for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
stacey_is_sassy
Written on Jun 11, 2017
Soooo, I tried my first Tiffany Reisz and it was...interesting. A couple of years ago, I was fascinated with books that pushed the boundaries in the bedroom...I mean torture chamber. I couldn't get enough of reading them. There was a little part of me that wanted to know if what I was reading was real or believable. How could a woman love a man who took pleasure in her pain? How could a man respect a woman who allowed that level of pain, humiliation and suffering be administered? Well, I think I'm over my fascination. I was sneering and making squinty eyes at my Kindle reading The Red.
Now, I can admit that the storyline captured and held my attention until the very last page. The storyline was riveting. How far would you go to fulfil a deathbed promise? Me, I'm a little too logical. I know that if someone I loved, who loved me in return, asked me to do something that would compromise my health, safety and well-being, I wouldn't do it. Simply, I don't believe money or material goods buy you happiness.
Anyways, if I could cut out the extreme kinky and replace it with very mild kinky and a lot of steamy, The Red would have been a more enjoyable experience. I was fascinated by the art that was described and left Google open looking at all the masterpieces. Geez, it took a lot more effort (back in the day) to get your fill of nudity. Someone had to paint it instead of heading to the newsagents (for a Playboy) or their computer (for Tumblr) to see it. I guess pornography has been around a lot longer than I thought.
I've now had my Tiffany Reisz curiosity appeased, and can go back to my mildly kinky and steamy reads, with a smile on my face.
Stacey is Sassy, received an advanced copy of this story. The copy provided is not the final copy and may be subject to edits and changes.
Linda
Written on May 12, 2017
The Red is mysterious, scandalous, strange, and weirdly arousing.
If I had to put The Red into a genre box, I'd be in big trouble, as it's a great mix with the strongest part being erotica. As always, Reisz managed to draw me in from the beginning with her enticing Mona and the very mysterious Malcolm. There is a fairy tale feel to this story, there is something that is similar to magic, but not quite, and there is also some very erotic passages, where the lines between real life and something not completely real are blurred.
The Red follows Mona after she realizes that she might not be able to keep her death-bed promise to her mom. Keeping the gallery in the family is important to her, but there just isn't any more money left. When a mysterious, beautiful stranger enters the gallery late one evening, everything Mona has known up until now might change. He will save the gallery, but only if Mona makes him a promise. And that promise is what gives her a lot of pleasure, but at the same time makes her ask a whole lot of questions.
There are a lot of hot scenes in The Red, some of them are so enticing I felt like I was there, dancing and twirling in the moonlight. Others made me cringe a little bit, because things were just so very strange... mysterious and rather taboo. I loved the whole story, though, and as always, Reisz's way with words had me more or less spellbound from start to finish, it was impossible to put the book down.
"We'll play games, you and I. Or I'll pay them and you'll play along. You won't know realty from fantasy." "I'll know." "You say that now... but I'm very good at the games I play." This time he didn't smile. He smirked like shed' heard the devil does.
"They were scared," ... he countered. "A woman with power. A woman who owned her body and wasn't afraid to sell it. That painting is art because it terrified its first viewers. Art should be dangerous, you know. It should say something to society that society doesn't want to hear. Do you know what the opposite of art is? Propaganda. There's too much of that in the world. Not enough art. And certainly not enough of this..."
No man had ever made her feel so much as Malcolm did. Pain didn't cancel out the pleasure - it doubled it, trebled it.