Review: Sapphire Blue by G. Doucette

I read one of G. Doucette’s previous novels, Fixer, and loved it, so when his publisher approached me to read Sapphire Blue I was thrilled. This is Mr. Doucette’s first foray into erotica. Sapphire Blue is an interesting brew of erotica, BDSM, paranormal, and horror.

From the blurb:

WARNING: DARK THEMES, EXPLICIT CONTENT

Has Mara lost control, or has it been taken from her?

Mara Cantor’s life is boring and uncomplicated, and she likes it that way. She has her internship at the museum—a job she shares with her roommate, Davis—and while it is low-paying and occasionally mind-numbing, it gives her all the free time she needs to finish her thesis. And that is just fine.

Between Argent, his gemstones, and Davis, Mara’s boring life has suddenly gotten very complicated. Now she is caught up in a sexual adventure that is either the most exciting time of her life . . . or the most terrifying.

This sounds like the beginning of an erotic triangle. In some ways it is, but I found the blurb for this book a tad misleading. Mara’s roommate, Davis, is the underdeveloped point of this lopsided triangle, though the story has more to do with Argent Leeds doing unethical things using the influence of mythical gemstones. Argent draws the innocent, somewhat naïve Mara into his web of deceit, plying her with hot sex and his extravagant lifestyle.

Without going into too much detail, about two-thirds of the way into Sapphire Blue, the story went a bit off the rails for me. As the true extent of Argent’s deception became clear, events took a disturbing twist. The sex scenes morphed into a porn-like orgy with nonconsensual elements and violence that I found decidedly unsexy, even horror-like. In the end, there are answers of a sort, but I’d hoped for a deeper look into Argent’s motivations and background.

This is where things become difficult for me as a reviewer. I can’t fault Mr. Doucette’s writing; it’s flawless, intriguing, and descriptive. The direction this story took became unsettling, and I found myself peeking through my fingers—something I’d rather not do when reading erotica. Honestly, I’m not really sure what genre Sapphire Blue truly fits into.

I give the writing a 4, the storyline a 3, and round it to a 3.25. Mr. Doucette has such a way with words, I’m looking forward to reading future offerings—maybe not in the erotica category.

3.25 Stars