Angel Lust : An Erotic Novel of Time Travel

Rating:
Summary: Beyond Erotica
Review: This book had more substance than either the title or the provocative cover photo implies and is quite an improvement over other gay erotica I've read. In fact, it should not even be classiified in this category for a number of reasons including the large quantity of research so obvious in its contents. Instead of a spiritual fantasy, this story reads more like an alternate history which, when juxtaposed with alternate sexuality, resulted in surprising dynamics that many books of either genre lack. The socio-political issues raised by the author yielded tension and gave credibility to the plotline which connected settings and characterizations through time-skipping a la Kurt Vonnegut. Though its continuity seemed occasionally disjointed (my only major criticism), I was never bored. The author's tendency to transform people and places into archetypes was somewhat derivative of, say, Clive Barker's approach, but it provided a heady alternative to your average work of erotica. I could readily identify with the impulsive nature of the protagonist and the quirkiness of the book's supporting cast of misfits and heroes; these qualities helped to flesh out (so to speak) their characters, angelic or otherwise. The liberal use of sexually explicit scenes was not necessarily gratuitous since they operated as a plot device: orgasm as the catalyst for time travel. Implausible as this notion may seem, I revelled in its escapism. Though no one can be defined solely by their sexual orientation, the concept of Eros as the equivalent of pure spirituality (the connecting thread) intrigued me. It's reassuring to know that we have more than referential non-fiction to depict the diversity of gay culture and its indispensibility to history.