Fans Only. B. Love. 2020. 118 pages. [Source: Kindle Unlimited.]
B. Love has capitalized on current events, and Only Fans is definitely a part of it. What started as a friendly discussion among friends turns into a proposition that Aries is loathe to turn down — start a strictly platonic Only Fans with frenemy Merrick.
On the surface, it’s a mutually beneficial plan — for 6 months, the two will run an anonymous Only Fans account. They’ll make it their little secret, and solemnly swear not to get emotionally attached. At the end, they’ll split the profits; he’ll open his own music studio and she’ll be able to afford a year-long apprenticeship across the country with a fashion design icon. Seems legit; what could go wrong?
Obviously a lot can go left when you’re making porn with a close friend. Even while trying their hardest to remain neutral toward each other, it was inevitable that they’d get to see a different side of each other. I found it interesting to see how they plotted their cinematic exploits. The mechanics of how to film while making sure their identities remain hidden, whether to give their channel a storyline … it was involved and quite entertaining.
It shouldn’t come as any surprise that this book is filled with sex. That’s kind of the entire point. But the story itself isn’t centered on it. The author focuses a lot on Merrick and Aries’ motivations for the sex. That helps give them a bit more depth than I would’ve expected otherwise. There’s also a lot of humor. Part of it stems from the playful love-hate relationship they have. They’re certainly close because they share a friend circle, but they have more of an annoyance dynamic than an antagonist one.
One thing I was surprised not to see come up more prominently was the debate about sex work. One can debate the merits of consuming pornography, but you’ll find much more dialog around the decision of some to engage in sex work. With the exception of the initial debate and a bit of static later in the book, there was little discussion about whether Only Fans was an empowering way to express one’s sexuality or another exploitive tool that demeaned those who used the platform.
I enjoyed Fans Only. It was a short and hot read, and entertaining on multiple levels. It was certainly more than just a book about sex, despite that being a core premise. The characters’ banter kept me laughing, and their chemistry kept me interested.
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