Looking for a $2.99 novella that’s well-paced with decent characterization and a ton of really hot steam? You should definitely check out Charlotte Stein.
I recently discovered Charlotte Stein and I’m definitely a fan. She writes short erotic novels, but her books have way more plot and character development than most other works of erotic fiction. In fact, if you didn’t tell me she was an erotic writer, I would classify The Professor as a romance.
This book hit the spot in so many ways. The characters start out in England, at a small college with a serious dark academia vibe, and the plot kicks off right away.
Esther is the nerdy, introverted college student who scrapes by with Bs, and Professor Harding is the young (and handsome) but scary professor who she just wants to avoid. The novel opens with Esther having a mini panic attack because she accidentally gave her very private, super scandalous work of erotic fiction to Harding instead of turning in her usual boring essay.
Professor Harding calls Esther into his office (which is so Harry Potter, complete with a small stove and various types of loose tea that he serves while it rains outside) and tells her that she’s missing her calling. She’s shocked, because he seems passionless, but she slowly starts to recognize that there’s a lot beneath his cold, composed exterior.
She agrees to work with him on her writing, and it gets steamy really quickly. However, I love that Harding never actually crosses the line. Sure, his words are sexual in the context of her writing, but he’s very clear about the fact that he’s her professor and things need to stay professional.
They don’t actually connect until much later, and it’s pretty much all Esther’s doing. Shortly after, he takes a new position and is no longer her professor, and even then he doesn’t want to touch her. Not only does he feel immensely guilty about the power dynamic (which quickly switches when Esther realizes that she’s more mature than him in some ways) but he also has some serious emotional issues and is terrified to get close to anyone at all.
The Professor is about two lonely characters who think differently than everyone else, yet they find solace in each other. Esther and Harding begin to write letters to each other filled with flowery, Victorian language, and this is clearly a kink for them, one that few modern-day people in the dating world would understand. It’s clear that they’re actually right for each other, having suffered similar issues and desiring the same sort of contact.
There is plenty of tension throughout The Professor and very few uncomfortable moments (at least for me), regardless of the power dynamic. By the end of the book, I couldn’t believe how sweet both of these characters are. I seriously just wanted to hug them.
The sex steams are also hot. Like, if you enjoy dirty talk, then this is definitely the book for you. I sometimes find myself cringing during contemporary novels when the dirty talk gets out of hand, and I literally did not cringe once while I was reading. For me, that’s major. The smutty verbal sparring is just so well done; it feels totally realistic and only adds to the characterization since they’re both writers who love flowery words.
There’s also plenty of sexual build-up. I thought that they would get down to it once they were in Harding’s office, but I had to wait for many more chapters (spoiler alert: it was worth it). Both main characters have different kinks that are pretty normal but ultra hot.
Overall, I thought this was a really sweet read with a great gothic vibe and tons of smut. The characters were deep enough to carry the plot (though you probably shouldn’t expect any massive characterization) and the novel is perfectly paced, especially if you’re on the hunt for an erotic novella that has an actual plot.
Esther wrote down her fantasies about her tutor, but she never intended for him to read them.
Once they cross the line there’s no going back.
Esther has always been an average student. She coasts through life on a sea of Bs, until a fatal mistake jolts her out of mediocrity and into something else entirely. She accidentally leaves a story in an essay for her teacher — one that no teacher should ever see. And especially not Professor Halstrom.
His lectures are legendary, and he is formidable. But most of all: he is devastatingly handsome, and now he has Esther’s most private and erotic fantasies. The stage is set for humiliation. Until the Professor presents her with a choice. He offers private tuition at his home.
And at first that’s exactly what she does, sure there remains a line between teacher and student that she would never cross it and that someone like Harding never would. He is far too cold and sharp, and so invested in all of his rules that breaking them seems unthinkable.
A single touch would be too much.
A wrong word could ignite an inferno.
So what happens when both of them want to burn?
GET THE BOOK
