Review by Frank Plowright
Although continuing the volume numbers of the Sunstone series, the addition of Mercy to the title indicates a divergence into a different arena. While Ally still features prominently in one series of flashbacks, Lisa is absent other than as the ears to whom the stories are being told.
Mercy is Alan and Anne relating their forms of sexual awakening, and in Volume 6 there was a definite disparity. Alan and former girlfriend Ally’s faltering steps into BDSM experimentation with each other were charming, while Anne discovering she was attracted to a woman was a less interesting story despite the metalhead background. However, that strand offers greater interest here, which is just as well since Anne’s given far more pages than Alan and Ally. They’re improved not least for an explanation of unexpected physical consequences, but more importantly for a discussion of gaps in relationships. Yes, it could equally apply to a straight couple, but it’s the intelligent handling that raises Anne’s story.
A provocatively erotic fantasy story might be a strange place to have discussions about pornography and reality, but they’re welcome. Once extremely restricted in places, in the 21st century, for good or bad, almost anyone who wants to access porn is able to do so. Stjepan Šejić has in earlier volumes mentioned the difference between staged fantasy and actual possibilities, and comically reinforces here how some standbys of filmed sex aren’t practical in real life, a distinction that should be more widely made elsewhere.
If that makes it sound like Sunstone’s devolved into preaching, that’s not the case. The points are raised, but in context. There’s also a greater amount of well timed comedy sequences this time, and we learn how it is Anne became a tattoo artist. It makes Volume 7 more satisfying than Volume 6, and in case it needs noting, Šejić’s art is amazing.
