I think this might be the best edition of BWE yet! The concept is great and gives the authors so much room for interpretation. There’s something for everyone in this collection. Overall, the stories are fantastic.

Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 8 is a compilation book of short story erotica by a variety of different authors. There is a mix of styles, and the stories are aimed at different preferences so there should be something for everyone. The stories can be read in 20 minutes so great for dipping into. A steamy, spicy read !

BWE8 offers stories from authors that write to your imagination. You will find that you must read your favorite or favorites a few times just to make sure you caught all the erotic, sexy and true love before you go back a read again.
One author offers a chance to see what sexy play looks like on a cello and another in a greenhouse. You have to read both (no spoilers here) but just a hint about my two favorites.
Rachel Kramer Bussel once again brings stories of women taking charge but this time you get to read about ways they play.

A good collection of steamy scenes.
Playing a cello/piano naked...hot.
There were a few one handed reads 😉 and a few I skimmed.
I received a copy via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I have enjoyed many of these volumes in the past but this one was just okay. There wasn't a lot of variety and several of the stories were bland for an erotica collection. There were a couple that I really enjoyed. And a couple I skipped completely. All in all it's an okay read.

This is a good selection of short stories and there is a little something for everyone between the covers. Each story takes only 15 to 20 minutes to read. There is lots of variety, including Science Fiction, Historical romance and stories about pleasure and playfulness (this year's theme).

A big thank you to Net Galley and Cleis Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As with any short story collection, there are some stories that are better than others. However, more good ones than not, so a good book overall.

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

Stories to entice and fulfill lustful desires. Multifaceted and enjoyable. An awesome, one sitting read.

Thank you for the ARC of this collection of stories. However, I think this may just not have been my cup of tea. The stories were a bit too out there for my more traditional preferences. Still, I loved that it was a collection of different stories that had a wide variety of topics and points of view!

It was OK. There is a real lack of diversity in these anthologies. We need more than a couple of BIPOC authors

When I saw some of my favourite authors like Rilzy Adams, Ruby Lang, Eva Leigh, and Fiona Zedde listed for this year's volume I just had to try and get an advanced reader copy to dive in.

It turned out to be the best "Best Women's Erotica of the Year" volumes I've read.

With this year's theme being PLAY , the stories were indeed playful and spanned historical, contemporary, and paranormal/ phantasy settings with some being spicier and more explicit than others.

I particular enjoyed the stories by the authors I mentioned above who managed to include Happy Ever Afters or at least Happy For Now's to conclude their super hot stories.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this anthology ahead of the publication date.

I enjoyed this book, it was collection of short stories. All sorts of different types, from teasing to some very spicy … yet none were crude. Thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an ARC for free, in exchange for an honest review.

Normally I enjoy some erotica, but very few of the stories were interesting and a lot of the steam and spice fell flat.

A great selection of erotica fiction. There is something for everyone’s taste. Each story only takes 15 to 20 minutes to read, and there is a big variety to choose from; Science Fiction, Historical romance, pure need for pleasure stories


I loved most of the stories.


I would like to thank Net Galley and Cleis Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Really enjoyed this one! Overall great stories-- modern, entertaining, sexy without being crude. A really good one to start with if you're new to erotica. The only criticism I have is that I feel like I read so many sentences about his member being darker than the rest of his body, to the point where it made me wonder if several of the stories were actually by the same author.

The thing I liked about this book is that there is so much variety between each short story. I didn't feel like this volume was as good as previous volumes, but it was still a good read.

Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This isn't the first volume of BWE I've read, nor will it probably be the last.

What I enjoy most about these collections is the fact that it gives you a little bit of everything. Stories range from Historical, Contemporary, Paranormal, etc. With all different relationship types and stories. These short stories are enough to give you a bite of something before bed, or just to read in the waiting room before your next appointment.

The stories range from simple teasing to all out spiciness- and sometimes that's hard to do with an anthology. It's also really great to experiment with reading different tropes! For example, I am not the biggest fan of contemporary stories, but here where they are laid between different tropes helps a reader ease into the genre.

In all I give this collection a solid 4 stars- some of the stories aren't perfect, but as a collection gives an easy and engaging read.

Another entertaining volume in this annual series. This year's theme is "play", and the authors have had a lot of fun with literal and creative interpretations. There is a little something for everyone, whether you prefer a light romp or a more angsty tale.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

This is an easy-read, as it's an anthology of several short stories. Very different ones with very different kinks or fetishes, some of them vanilla, some of them hardcore. There is a balance between realistic and absolutely fantasy based fictional stories, so its diversity definitely is a good point.
Because of this very same reason, I recommend it to anyone who is new to this genre but wants to know more about it and wants to discover what works best for them. Ruby Lang's story can be considered as a vanilla-story without any kinks, so that might be a good start to gain a useful insight into Erotica's world.
Thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an ARC for free, in exchange for an honest review.

The short erotic stories in this book...are sure to keep you warm at night. 🔥

We get couples trying to spice up the bedroom, long-distance couples using technology to connect, crushes finding out the feelings mutual, and so much more!

I love that we get a mix of contemporary/futuristic/paranormal/etc and a variety of strangers, new lovers, and long-time loves within these pages.

If you're new to erotica or just getting into it...this is a great book for you to pick up!

*I received an ARC, ahead of release, through Netgalley*