Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

I'll admit, maybe my hopes were too high for New Erotica for Feminists. Some snippets made me snortle, but overall I was quite disappointed. It had some sloppy jokes which places it firmly outside of inclusive feminism, even though they made references to intersectionality. Two specific comments stick out in my mind: calorie free wine and pants which "keep it all in". This presents the fantasy world as fatphobic and is problematic for many reasons. Also, it is very hetero and gender normative and I understand why (hands up, I'll exclaim "Urgh, men" at least twice a day) but men aren't the only agents of the patriarchy and misogyny isn't exclusive to mixed gendered interactions, nor is misogyny only felt by cis women.

(This is a e-ARC which is why I am reading it on Kindle. If you are interested in purchasing, I strongly recommend the physical copy. This is definitely a coffee table / washroom book to flick through. I read it back to back in under 20 minutes).

Good little book, easy to dip in sand out of as its a collection of short stories. Some are good and some are quite rubbish, but it was ok overall.

I really didn't enjoy this. I got the premise and the point of it but it got tired after the third section. I liked some of the stories and there were a couple that made me smile but most were really dissapointing

This was a book that I knew I needed to read as soon as I saw it doing the rounds on social media. Filled with hilarious snippets, it makes for a quick and easy read.

Although filled with humour, it really hits home important battles that feminism is battling day to day in a fun and accessible format.

Not for me-sadly I just did not enjoy this at all. I didn’t even finish it,
Found it a little lacklustre .
Thank you to both NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for my eARC

A fun and hilarious collection of quotes and anecdotes that just made me and all the girls in the office giggle.

Entertaining and timely. Hopefully these situations will become the norm in time.

......................

Wickedly satirical book which takes a swipe at contemporary erotica. In this book feminist fantasies come true - taking out the recycling is sexy, as is a construction worker who catcalls about books instead of looks. A light funny read that would make an ideal holiday gift.

Very funny, there's a nice balance of humour and message.
There were a couple of these that had me rolling with laughter.
Would make a great gift.

A hilarious look at the erotica genre and how it can be transformed to be more feminist friendly, and overall female-friendly. I for one cannot wait to see the fantastical retelling of Adam and Eve not trusting a 'fucking talking snake' and doing experiments on the apples in the garden of Eden. This book encapsulates erotica from all angles- the classic porn plumber/pizza man/firefighter/professor, pop culture icons like Ed Sheeran (and his tribute to Agatha Christie), Tom Hardy's sparkling water delivery and Hugh Grant's spaghetti skills, to classical literature from Romeo & Juliet to The Crucible. My only complaint is that it's way too short- I would love to read more from these amazing women. Laugh out loud funny, refreshingly honest and just a little ridiculous, it's a read that'll give you a moments pause from the shit storm of reality.

Well, things are about to get steamy in here!  New Erotica for Feminists takes our wildest fantasies from equal pay to a reimagining of some of our favourite films in a feminist way and makes them a reality. An excellent mix of humour and satire this is going to get you talking, one way or another. 

Ok, ok, this isn't exactly the next 50 Shades, but it should be a bestseller. This is a collection that takes the worn out tropes of erotica and porn and turns them on their heads. Born from a conversation between friends joking about a perfect feminist world - and so New Erotica was born. 

'Imagine a world where erotica was written by feminists: Their daydreams include equal pay, a gender-balanced Congress, and Tom Hardy arriving at their doorstep to deliver a fresh case of LaCroix every week.'

I read this in a flash and was laughing out loud the whole way through. So much so, I got a few odd looks from my partner and so I had to explain what I was reading - I'm pretty sure it confused him even more. That's the perfect thing about the collection, it doesn't try and take itself seriously, it doesn't attack anyone or anything. This makes a point because it makes you laugh at the same time. It doesn't take away from the issues - but makes them more relatable. 

This doesn't take away for what we're fighting for, instead, it injects a little fun and silliness. I can imagine if you've had a day of patriarchy fuelled BS this is the perfect book to come home too. Is it a literary masterpiece that will change the tides of modern feminism? Probably not but I think it will give the lift that we need in the current climate. 

Of course, I gave this 5 stars! I was completely hooked and even though as of writing, I have just finished - I want to pick it up and read all over again. This is going to make an excellent Christmas present after I've bought my own copy of course! 

A huge thank you to the authors, publishers and Netgalley for this review copy in exchange for an honest review.

This reads as less of a collection of short stories and more as a series of quips and amusing fantasies about what the world must be like. In the acknowledgements at the end, the authors say that this came out of, if I'm remembering correctly, a conversation online where they came up with all of these amusing satirical scenarios, and it does feel quite like that. At times that can feel a little like you're missing out on an in-joke, but for the most part, you're welcomed into the conversation and you can laugh along with them. 

It is a very quick read if you sit and devour it all in one go, I'd recommend maybe reading a chunk at a time every time you get particularly frustrated at the world we live in. Accidentally hear someone mention Piers Morgan? Get catcalled while in Sainsbury's? Find out how much your male co-workers are being paid? Read a bit of this! 

I wouldn't say this is a great escape from those times of frustration, as satire should, it more draws attention to those inequalities in the world rather than hiding them, but it's nice to know that someone else is angry too!

As I say, this isn't my normal genre so take my star rating with a pinch of salt, I did enjoy reading this but I don't think I'd read it again having finished it. I might, however, buy it for a friend who is equally frustrated with the world!

My rating: 3/5 stars

I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

A perfectly timely collection of hilarious anecdotes that hit that niggle you've got buried inside you, whether it's strangers commenting on your parenting, men undermining your button pushing ability in a lift, or how you wish cat callers would focus on the book tucked under your arm instead. A very short read - it only took me an hour or two at most to read - but so very uplifting in a time where everything on the news and your social media news feeds is doom and gloom, necessary #metoo movements, and a never ending supply of stories from women around the world that make you want to cry and yell and make some change. Reading this won't change the world, but it will improve your mood and make you feel seen, make you feel connected to other women around the world, so that when you get to the back of the book with a list of resources and what you can do to make a change, you feel recharged and ready to go!

The acknowledgements are longer than the book, which is just irritating. It's not very funny. My main gripe is that it's not very feminist - to suggest that a woman would be titillated by a man taking out the recycling suggests that this is a noteworthy act, which it is not. A more feminist book of erotic stories, even one that was satirical, would see more women owning their sexuality than this, which primarily brings up tired cliches of the evils of men. This is not erotica. It is not feminist. It's not funny. So what's the point?