Messalina - Devourer of Men: The first novel by Zetta Brown

When life imitates art...

Eva Cavell is a woman with an embarrassing secret.

She is sexually frustrated and is convinced that her size and race intimidates men.

In an attempt to relieve her sexual tension, every Thursday Eva goes to a local movie theater and allows desperate strangers to fondle her in the dark. She allows no eye contact, no phone numbers—and definitely no names.

During one of her escapades, renowned artist, Jared Delaney, a smooth Southern gentleman with irresistible violet eyes, has Eva breaking her own rules. He has been watching Eva on her weekly visits and sees through her icy defence and straight through to the hot passion burning underneath.

...expect to be framed

Messing about in dark theaters isn’t a good pastime for Eva. She is a tenure-track instructor at a private Denver college that is currently embroiled in a sex scandal and she is the youngest child of a prominent black family.

To add to her turmoil, Neil Hollister, Eva’s classroom aide and former student, is a handsome, barely-legal frat brat whose interest in her is carnal rather than academic—and she’s tempted.

Despite desperate attempts to maintain control, Eva’s world is spiralling into chaos. As emotional pressures build inside her, an explosion is imminent. Will she ever be able to live her life how she wants and without shame?

The answer may lie with a woman who is bold and unashamed in her sexuality. Can Eva be more like her? What would happen if she even tried?

Messalina – Devourer of Men

Zetta Brown was the regional first-place winner for The National Society of Arts & Letters (NSAL) Award for Short Fiction in 1998. Her work has been published in literary journals produced by Tarrant County College, Mary Hardin-Baylor University and Southern Methodist University. In 1999 and 2000, her stories were adapted for performance for Letters Live! at the Craft of Writing conference in Denton, Texas. This is her first novel.