Rent boys, strippers, porn stars all looking for their Cinderella story is hard to get wrong especially with so many talented writers submitting stories. This edition certainly does not fail, but it does not quite live up to its predecessor either. The stories in this edition are all well written, there are no weird POV or author voices, but still many of these stories seem rushed and less fleshed out. The first story by Connie Bailey had a lot of information crammed into it centered on a closeted mob boss, hitmen and other mobsters that seemed very cramped and disorganized. I am not sure this was the strongest story to start the anthology off with because it set the pace and tone for the others. Each story has different elements and levels of heat. From sweet to scorching and everything in between. Everyone will find a story in this anthology that will touch their heart and maybe the same one will start their engine, but if not, one of the stories in this group will do that too. If nothing else, hold out for the last story about Angel and Sebastian by Fae Sutherland and Marguerite Labbe ~ despite some confusing POV switching, be sure you have a cold glass of water to help you cool down after you turn the last page. As far as anthologies go this is another one that I would recommend overall. I definitely enjoyed this second installment of Sindustry as much as the first, and thought it had a similar mix of stories - from those that were fantastic and moving reads, to those that made me laugh (not always intentionally, I suspect). Yes, there were some cliched tales where I felt that the writers had gone so far away from their own life experiences that they just didn't know how to write the character's motivations convincingly, resulting in a strange fantasy version of the sex industry. However, there were also those that were truly moving, particularly the contributions from JL Merrow, Zahra Owens and GS Wiley, although there were many other stories that I enjoyed as well.I think in an anthology of this type there is always a danger that the stories will start to become a bit samey, as every one of them has a romantic resolution, but there was a surprising amount of variety in terms of the characters and their situations. Definitely worth a read if you like the idea of m/m romance with a frisson of seediness.
Do You like book Sindustry II (2009)?
2,5 stars - not as good as the first one. And here the focus was really on prostitution.
—NoLies
"The Meaning of Perfection" by Taylor Lochland - 4 stars
—fafnir
