The promises of a book’s premise is often what grabs my attention and entices me to read, sometimes even before I check out the author. I want to know that the story I’m about to embark upon is something that interests me, even if the characters, plot and setting fail to engage me.

The premise of Mardi Ballou’s Long, Slow Ride from Ellora’s Cave drew me in from the start: an older woman (not that old, as heroine Lori Nelson is 36, a year younger than myself), a younger man, and a boring wedding reception. An interesting combination I couldn’t pass up.

When chauffer Jeff Russo approaches Lori Nelson and invites her to dance at the wedding reception of one of Lori’s co-workers, Lori’s refusal falls on deaf ears. Jeff has been attracted to her all evening, and taking no for an answer isn’t a part of this twenty-five year old’s M.O. He sweeps her to her feet and they enjoy a fast dance that segues into something a little more slow and sensual as the evening moves on. When he’s called to finish his duties by driving the bride and groom away, Jeff promises to return for Lori.

Lori doesn’t hold out much hope of Jeff’s coming back for her, a combination of the fleeting nature of their dances and the fact that she’s still mentally battling demons from a relationship gone wrong. When he does return, she finds herself smitten. A night of passion and a steamy morning shower a deux leaves her wanting more but unwilling to admit it. Will this be a simple one-night stand or the start of something with the power to change them both forever?

While I loved the premise of the story, I must admit that I was far from taken by it. Minor editing glitches (for example, the last paragraph at the end of chapter two, where the alarm wakes them from their night of passion to face the morning, should have been the first transitional paragraph to introduce Chapter 3) took time to re-read and slowed my interaction with the story.

The biggest issue was my inability to determine what kind of story this was: a full-blown erotica or a contemporary, sensual love story. The story begins slow and promises a deep sensuality with a good storytelling rhythm. We get to know Lori and Jeff and like them. When Jeff returns for Lori, however, an ugly scene ensues with Mark, Lori’s co-worker, for no apparent reason. Mark is only a secondary character and comes across as a bully and snob. Caught in the middle, Lori attempts to diffuse the situation. She has an urge to defend Jeff, then instantly has a graphic erotic reaction to him—in the middle of the fight. The whole scene jarred me from the sensual story I’d expected, eliminating my suspension of disbelief.

The inability to immerse myself in the story continued for the rest of the book. As the story progresses, interaction between Lori and Jeff grows far more graphic and erotic than we were led to expect at the start of the story. The time span of the book is only one night and one morning. Between the wedding reception and the next morning when Lori leaves for work, they have sex several times. Before Lori leaves for work, Jeff has decided he wants her in his life forever, and Lori has put her complete trust in him despite having battled the thought of her ex-boyfriend during most of the night. I realize that, at fifty three pages, this book is intended to present the slice of a story, not a full-blown novel, but Lori’s preoccupation with her ex made her deep trust in Jeff in a literal span of hours hard to believe.

Long, Slow Ride is a story caught in uncertainty. It starts with the promise of a sensual story where the characters grow together in deeply meaningful relationship, then morphs into a sexual romp where the actions are believable but the emotions are not. I can’t say that I’d read it again, but everyone’s tastes differ.

Reviewed by Sashi Ketsel
© Sept 2008