I thought this book would be a great read...finding out about an industry that -- for the most part -- operates under everyone's radar. I imagined so many funny and strange stories from the description of the book, but I ended up finding it very hard to continue reading.

If this book had been told to me in a conversation at a bar over a few rounds of drinks, I probably would have loved the it, but the writing was extremely difficult to navigate and distracted from the story.

The writing was too wordy, overly pretentious, lacked direction, used metaphors and similes that didn't fit (a sexy girl was moored in her location...is she a fat barge or an attractive porn star?), used strings of words in a sentence that all meant the same thing (pick one of them), repeated words in close proximity (it's not a sin, just bad writing - "the producer produced a contract"...perhaps it was supposed to be funny, it wasn't, it just sounded awkward).

I hate criticizing other's work...it's hard to write a novel/book...but the writer must do their research before publishing. Study the craft, read some "how to" books, get an editor (that has experience in the book industry). ( )

The adult movie industry (aka 'porn') is a billion dollar industry, meaning there are a lot of people watching (and paying to watch) porn. But few people really know the industry - the ins and outs and what happens off-screen.

Travis Lazar is a porn producer and Tiffany West is the hottest actress in the industry at the moment. The two of them working together could bring the industry to its knees before them. But because there's big money in porn, there are a lot of investors and would-be investors all wanting a piece of the action. And despite the money, there are laws on the books and federal agents always looking to make an example of workers in porn.

But the biggest threats to both Travis and Tiffany aren't the investors or the feds - it's the other men and women (especially the women) working in the industry. And now, with the biggest awards night on the horizon, tensions are tighter than ... well, tensions are tight.

The 'hook' to this book is not the book or the story, but the author. Stuart Canterbury is a long-time adult industry film (porn) producer. But having insider knowledge of something doesn't mean you can suddenly write about it or tell a good story.

The writing here is, at best, fine. There is a lack of focus here, stemming, most likely, from the author's insider knowledge and trying to make sure to include clever tidbits. I struggled to find an interesting storyline (there are a couple).

But the bigger problem with the book is the flatness of the characters. Tiffany and Travis are the most well defined, but that's not saying much. Neither really steps beyond the anticipated stereotype of a porn actress and a porn producer. It certainly tries to show that these people are more than what we see on the screen - the unbridled lust and constant 'need' for sex - is just an act, but the non-screen personas are greatly less interesting than the characters they play. And we also get an awkward dichotomy - the characters want to show us they are more than the porn movies they make, but the porn movies and porn industry is all consuming to them (as evidenced by the anxiety surrounding the awards).

The book is supposed to be funny, but even here, Canterbury doesn't quite play this very well. The humor either comes off as forced or in the wrong place (and the reader asks "is that humor or just a comment?").

There are plenty of adult industry themed books out there, with many of them written by 'insiders' but no matter what the subject, a novel needs to tell a story and this just doesn't click. ( )

An entertaining book about the adult film industry. Travis is a producer and is vying for Best Film of the Year. It was a fun read, and the adult actresses all seem like hilarious divas. The backstabbing producers and tax evasion was also funny to me. For a book about adult films, it's not that lewd. I found it interesting and a good read. ( )

This short novel by Stuart Canterbury is a fictional story of the happenings in the porn and X-rated movie business. The story provides a behind the scenes look at this billion dollar industry.

While the story was interesting, the writing was amateurish. The characters were one-dimensional, with none of them feeling real, not even the protagonist, Travis Lazar, nor the supporting character of Tiffany West. I never felt any empathy for any of the characters. None of them were interesting enough for me to care about them. The book was difficult to finish as I just did not want to pick it up to continue reading it. But I did finally make it to the end. Thankfully, it is a short book.

The story involves a number of suspenseful elements, including company mergers, an FBI raid, diva drama (lots of diva drama), company takeovers, a suicide, and a couple of lawsuits between rivals. If this setting is of interest to you, perhaps you may enjoy it more than I did, but for me it fell very flat.

I received an advance copy of the book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. ( )

I received this book as an early reviewer. I have no problems with the adult film industry. I find sex workers to be cruelly underpaid and under appreciated for the jobs they do, and really thought this book was going to be interesting based on the author’s personal connection to the scene. It wasn’t funny. It wasn’t interesting. I read it about 30% of the way through and lost interest. It’s just not well written. The story could be interesting but the plot doesn’t seem plausible, and the characters aren’t unique. I mostly just feel bad for the performers, if this was any bit true. I would suggest a rewrite, or maybe an editor to find ways to make this story…. More coherent to follow, or find a more compelling way to tell it. It’s just not a great read. ( )