JoeyPinkney.com Book Review
Pink Moon: A Menagerie of Erotic Prose
By Sarah Murdaugh
(iUniverse)
4 of 5 Stars

Pink Moon: A Menagerie of Erotic Prose by Sarah Murdaugh is a colorful arrangement of poetry focused on the pleasures of intimate sexual relationships. Murdaugh’s mixture of words and imagery fuels a sensual theme that travels throughout this poetry collection.

There is a variety of moods within Pink Moon. I must admit, I was a little put off by the recurrence of certain adjectives and phrases, but Pink Moon is a definite sculpture of words. Most of the poems are sensual, lulling and mesmerizing the reader into bliss. There are streaks of raunchy imagery that shock and move the sensual musings into sexual realms of thoughts.

Murdaugh has found a way to merge the simplicity of emotions and situations with the complexity of the English language. Instead of getting lost in the words, you will clearly see the poet’s intentions.

For example, she taught me why women cry after an intense love-making session in her poem “Lucid Ignis Fatuus”.

We laid in a cherry blossom field
under the covers of a moonlit sky.
We made love so deep I cried,
not in pain, but in intense release
of passion held prisoner by fear.

Essentially, Pink Moon is a form of sexual and emotional intercourse because it precisely communicates the ideas, thoughts and experiences of sensual intimacy to the reader. The word “erotic” may be mistaken for carnal, which pertains strictly to the appetites of the flesh. Murdaugh truly infuses the full involvement of a female lover who sees, smells, hears, feels and tastes the coitus in as it develops and transcends from the physical to the spiritual.

There is definitely a theme of eros love flowing throughout Pink Moon. The love presented by Murdaugh’s poetry is sexual, yet the foundation is rested up romance. As you read poems such as “Love Like The Breeze”, “Passion” and “Poetic Lover”, you get the idea of an intimate love as opposed to lusty beckonings.

From the poem “Passion”:

Spilling my verses without hesitation
Is my expertise and my passion.
I’ll serve it to you on a silver platter,
Seduce your mind when it’s in a clutter,
Twist your soul till you wish I was your lover.
My thoughts will succumb your heart in time,
My impeccable love, you are so damn fine…

As Murdaugh gracefully alternates between the aggressor and the passive, her poetic prowess stays intact. Poems like “Master” and “Perplexed Pleasure” smack you in the face. Instead of reeling back, you rub your face and wonder “What’s next?” To say she has a way with words is an understatement.

From the poem “Master”:

Must I remind you,
I am only here to twist you
Tie,
lick,
sip,
And then bite you,
Pistol whip you
And to man handle you!

If you like sexually-tinged poetry, Sarah Murdaugh’s Pink Moon is a perfect addition to your poetry book collection. It’s strong enough to arouse and smooth enough to sooth.

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