Barb's Book Reviews: Review of "Blame: A Novel" by Cam Carson

Sunday, March 26, 2017

Review of "Blame: A Novel" by Cam Carson

Tatya Zaslavskaya - lanky, blonde. and attractive - is a sports massage therapist and one of the top players on her women's beach volleyball team in Miami, Florida.

She's also secretly smitten with her new teammate - tall, pretty, red-haired Kris Jayson, a former college rower who recently joined the volleyball squad.

Still, when Coach Lake asks Tatya who should be her partner at the upcoming volleyball tournament in San Diego, Tatya wants to be fair. Should she suggest Lucy - a long-time teammate and solid player, or Kris - a talented novice who's hungry for success. In the end Tatya cedes the choice to Coach Lake, who picks Kris.

When Kris injures her hamstring a couple of weeks before the tournament, Tatya is determined to help her heal. To aide Kris's recovery Tatya offers homemade meals and massage therapy.

These somewhat sensual interactions are thrilling for Tatya, though Kris - who's only dated boys in the past - seems to regard them solely as friendly overtures.

Tatya and Kris make it to San Diego, where they meet other attractive volleyball players - and nature takes it course. Meanwhile, all the women's teams are preparing for the tournament. The descriptions of the practices and games are exciting: serve, dip, bump, spike, occasionally fumble ....lose a point, score a point, etc. I was eager to see who would eventually win the championship.

In her zeal to win an important game Tatya does something she fears might alienate Kris. After overcoming this rough spot in their friendship Tatya confesses her attraction to her friend, which eventually brings the women closer.

In time, personal conversations lead to an exchange of confidences during which Kris discloses deep feelings of insecurity about her talent, abilities, and worth, and Tatya reveals profound grief over a former girlfriend. Can Tatya and Kris help each other heal and go forward?

An array of additional characters add interest to the story including several members of the Miami volleyball team, Tatya's roommate Brett, Kris's cat Itchy....

.....and Las Vegas volleyballer Dre - who engages in smoking sex with Tatya.

In fact there's plenty of red-hot sex in the story, which will appeal to fans of romance and erotica.

I enjoyed the scenes where Tatya prepared delicious dishes like ajiaco;

yucca fries;

couscous with vegetables;

jambalaya;

crab cakes;

chocolate mousse;

ice cream topped with cinnamon and figs, and more.

They made me wish I had a generous friend who was a good chef. :)

This is an engaging story about two women searching for happiness and fulfillment. I look forward to the second book in the series.

Rating: 4 stars

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Barb's Book Reviews

Sunday, March 26, 2017

Review of "Blame: A Novel" by Cam Carson

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