All Comments on 'A Shepherd in France Ch. 02'

Awesome to read more of Bens adventures. Thanks so much.

Now you've get us hooked, can we hope for another instalment?

BR, another terrifically erotic adventure for Ben and his most fortunate neighbor's with benefits. Just one quibble however.

A word of caution for anyone going up trams or climbing at high altitudes and who suffers from any of the variety of Anxiety Disorders. High-altitude, oxygen deprivation can trigger subconscious fears, migraine attacks .and traumatic flashbacks, even after returning to sea level.

If you suffer from anxiety attacks, check with a physician before attempting high altitude anything. Some people are fine with ant-anxiety medicines. Some will do okay carrying a small bottle of oxygen to sip at. Everybody is different and how we react from event to event can also differ.

Still hooked...addicted...spoiled by your well written tale!

Great story keep it going one of the best I've read on here

Keep them coming. This continued tale has kept me hooked since chapter one. Bravo

This story surely needs to keep going.

The arc of the story contained many events that were somewhat predictable, and i enjoyed every one with unalloyed pleasure. You are right in there with Andyhm and D.C. Roi and JustLikeEwe!

Keep at it because I am hooked. Cheers, Hank

After all these chapters, the characters are completely one dimensional. They are nothing but names. While I would have liked to have seen a deepening of the relationships with Gabriella and Kat, those were treated as developmentally finished. Kat's daughters are non-characters. There is nothing distinguishing about any of them.

Also, I, personally, don't understand the scaring fetish. I assume that's the reason for Ben getting stabbed and shot at every turn, because as a plot device, it's ridiculous and terrible. I don't say this to be a troll. It really isn't a very well written story. Even a little bit of character development could have gone a long way.

Lastly, please retire "growled". It seems Ben only growls or rumbles. It's okay for him to just speak from time to time.

I hope to see additional chapters soon. Please, keep his relationships meaningful and not stretch him too thin and try to keep an emphasis on the plot.

CONGRATULATIONS! You held us captive through surprise and suspense. The hero' mysterious weakness is a good ruse to keep us guessing -- when will it truly bite him in the ass?

Your sex scenes are good but that is you greatest opportunity for improvement. The named characters are another opportunity for improvement. Ben is too good. He needs to lech after the underage Miriam or something equally disgusting. As it is, he appears on his way to canonization. Except for Sophie, the women are interchangeable.

But, overall it was a very enjoyable read.

THANKS FOR SHARING.

but

this is a case of taking a good story too far. too many new characters. too many new injuries. too many scars. too many lost memories. too many original threads abandoned and ignored.

woulda

coulda

shoulda

almost, but not quite

Good story but are you ever going to finish it I hope so the first part was great and the follow up is good but if you don't finish the second part then the story will suck

Enjoyed it from start to finish. If you can believe this, even helped me understand some things about myself. Thank you for that.

I see many adventures in this storyline

Love your work. If you would like proofreading help, please send me a message. I see many adventures after Hawaii., New York, down under, orient. Back home for consolidation of all the changes, baby et al.

The violence was in most cases short and impulsive, no long arcs of angst about what is going to happen to the characters, only danger during the fights. That was really good.

Lucy and Sophia, great character development, loved those two.

Rest of the story was engaging, dramatic and erotic. Loved it!

love the characters, the interactions, the twists and turns, the whole nine yards. Thanks

Poor Big Ben. He was chopped up into fine bits and served hot many times. His sweetness was beyond question and his helping generous indeed. He had so many pieces of pie that he was constantly replenished.

All bad puns and jokes aside, I enjoyed the Ben(t) stories immensely. Thank you for giving of your energy, art, and time so that we were able to enjoy these reads. U r all so unselfish that I become angry when lesser beings give us nothing but negative comments. Shame! Lyn

the writing - the familiar and new characters - the whole ride thru the series. I'm glad you decided to continue the story! I have enjoyed the adventure ... thanks / Scotty

Wanted to rate 5 star series only let me do 3.?.. loved it looked forward to getting back to ben and the girls every moment i had. Fabulous characters with enough trouble and sex terrific mix thanksxxx

Great Plot and Story,

the characters are great and a lot of action, Love and really cool people.

Ben gets a lot of beating but also the better part of love.

Loved it

Please continue

Great story with good characters and loads of action.

I thought the lezzo theme with Catherine didn't contribute to the story though.

I skipped past that once I knew where it was going.

Fun if nothing else. Cat, helps heal a heart. Ben, heals many hearts and all is once well. What's next?

Thanks for sharing on Lit.

x

I really do love this story though I think the original arc was even better though. I do think the lesbo scenes were a bit forced but, hey, not my story. I looking forward to the rest of it.

It's a great story, but Catherine's lesbian escapade really pissed me off.

I've read all your submissions about Ben Shepard up to here, Your plot is well researched and your storytelling is great. Although I'm not an accomplished author I would like to offer a little advice.

1 At times I feel that you tend to go into too much detail. eg. where everybody sits at a meal. 2. Mixing up of characters. eg. Cat and 3. A few grammar and spelling errors.

Thank you for the great entertainment.

Good on the second read through, now that I know now to skip Cats lesbian scene, but other than that pretty much enjoyable. But the story suffers from what all harem erotica does, that most if not all of the characters are pretty 2D. It's easier to give a person one quality or have them be interchangeably generic then try to develop a characters relationship with 7 or 8 people, i.e. Ben is good to a fault with both a hero and inferiority complex, Trish is horny and unresponsive to Bens emotional advances etc. I don't however think BurntRedstone's other harem erotica suffers from this, as Burnt is so explicit who the women are and how they act and feel around Ed, the personal connections in that story feel a lot more real to me.

I absolutely love your stories!! If all I have on this site are them, I'd still be a happy camper reading them over, & over, & over!!! Please don't stop writing!!!

I've read the Ben Shepard series thus far and like the well-written tale for the most part. However, the overuse of exaggerated sexual experiences, i.e, how the characters frequently become catatonic or passes out altogether after intense orgasm or the too frequent physical danger to make Ben a "hero" just to add another adoring female to his haram, makes the story tedious and much more predictable. There are also too many coincidences to be believable; Lucy's husband happens to be the son of the plant owner Ben just met on his trip to Texas, the thugs in Paris, show up later at the ocean resort etc. I agree with other comments that you get too detailed about who is sitting where at the dinner table or who is wearing what clothing. That said, you write very well and and I'll probably finish the series but I do wish Ben wasn't such a emotionally damaged pussy.

again very well written story but i hate what you did what the Chanel and Margaux story lines, they have no busines being there imo. love how you handle the karen and penny arc though, Lucy is ok i gues but already stretching.

BUT I HATED CHANEL's CHARACTER.....

she was perfectly not in need to the story.....

Although Humor, emotions, and fun was perfectly matched in story.....

There's a rather large hole in the plot, Ben is happy that the US press has only blurry paparazzi photos, but in France he was getting recognised by people in the street, he's famous, hence the paparazzi. You can't have paparazzi if they don't know what you look like.

I have to disagree with all the negative comments that have been slung your way and simply say DAMN this man can write. Sure there is a lot of sex and the characters are slightly shallower than they might be in a novel but please let's get real and acknowledge this novella for what it is, a superbly written piece of erotica! Your character development is good, your sex scenes are steamy, your descriptions are detailed and your story development keeps the reader guessing. I am truly impressed and think you are one of the best writers I have encountered on this site.

P.S. I have one small suggestion. The first part of your series was edited beautifully and nearly devoid of errors, however, the editing in this second part of the series has quite a few lapses which could use some attention. A little more attention to the editing in your story would make it even that much better.

Why did you write Catherine that way? It doesn't make sense. Like, at all. She had a mind blowing sex session with Ben and then she's gay. Like, what the fuck?

I have now read the entire Shepherd series and really enjoyed the stories. I'm not sure how much more abuse Ben Shepherd's body can take but I would really like to know what becomes of his daughters, his relationships with the ladies. Also, being a technical person I would even like to see more stories related to his engineering and patents.

Well done! Looking over the negative comments, I can't really agree with most of them.

Cat's interlude with Chanel was a great way to bring out her wild side as she continues to explore her sexuality - appropriate for this MILF.

The editing still needs a little work, but has much improved since ch 5 of the original series. There was a discrepancy in spelling between the two series that confused me at first. Again, the editor should have picked up that Megan became Meagan and then slowly switched back. Also, Hannah became Hanna. A couple other places where the wrong name was used for who was where. Since I have not volunteered as an editor, I should not complain unless I fix that.

If any new character did not make sense, it was Lucy, but she opened up scenes for those who are into the tattoos. And I am interested to see how Tina and Lucy develop their relationship, opening up possibilities for more hardcore threesomes. So while she might not be needed from a story perspective, she was very needed for more prurient aspects.

Just a great job writing a really fun and sexy story. Well done, Sir! Well Done!

I love you're stories, read Eds and now Ben. Love them. Why did you have to make him hate the sculpture so much??? Destroy an already broken woman's inspiration from him, I know she went and got publicity from it but you know that had to hurt her psychologically, she's blind already now her probably most influential muse hates the piece out of shyness?? That's the only thing that I didn't like. He never apologized to her before the continued on either.

Otherwise keep up the good work!

I've seen you improve with each story. You have a gift.

I loved the bisexual nature of Catherine but it seems some just don't seem to understand that. The concept you kept hammering home about acceptance and just loving them, warts and all, seemed lost on some. That did introduce a wrinkle which you sort of skipped over although you touched on experimentation with others.

'not sure how you're going to develop the new love interest of Ben's in upcoming stories, but she's going to have to change a lifetime of habits - all on her own. Now that Ben rewarded her and has already slept with her, she'll probably do or say anything for another roll in the hay.

Poor Stephanie, she was stunned by Ben not liking the statue. Ben could have easily asked for a fig leaf to be added, he and Daniel did two tours of the Louvre, didn't they?

The editing was vastly improved. You had a few small ones but it didn't detract from the story. Good job!

Too bad there is no announcement system on Literotica. I'd like to read your future works!

I loved Ed and Grace's story, as well as The Shepherd of Ashburn Court, but this two-part series pales in comparison to those two, IMO. The shift to having Ben black out every time he does something violent... he wasn't like this at the beginning of the original series.

According to your own words, Ben doesn't do casual sex. He'll only take a woman to his bed if he's emotionally attached. Yet in this (France) series, you introduce a complete stranger and he's going to bed with her on the second date? That character was completely unlikable to me (I don't even recall her name... the Madame from Spain... she was bossy and jealous to a fault, and really had no redeeming qualities. The conversations between her and Ben sounded more like putting together a business deal than anything remotely romantic.

It's highly implausible that Ben gets shot or stabbed every other week, as seems to be happening in the entire series.

I was really, really hoping to see this France series be more about Ben, Rachel, and Sophia getting closer and closer, culminating in both sex and love. Instead it starts with the two girls conspiring with the twins back home (but that plot device never gets developed other than having a mention). Sophia dancing with Ben in the ballroom was magnificent, as well as their dance in the gazebo and the most erotic scene in this entire two-part story: Sophia and Ben in the cable car.

At the beginning of the original series, I thought you had a good base of characters to start with (the wives who became widows when the plane crashed), and thought you would devote the series to Ben gradually taking on more and more lovers from that pool of women. Instead you keep adding more and more strangers to the mix (the two girls he rescues that he now wants to adopt and treat like daughters, for example). Although you called them beautiful a few times, I couldn't get past the first impression you created when you said they had breast implants that were so large as to almost disfiguring, as well as "pouty fish lips". Consequently I just kept imagining two freak-looking women.

At any rate, it's an old story so this may not mean much, but I just had to vent a little disappointment. Mainly because I loved the other series so much, and because I'm hopelessly in love with Sophia. :)

I just like to read your stories, unassuming hero indeed...good for at least another story or two,with him as the lead character...A lot of effort for your readers always shows itself, good plot, well devloped characters and makes one feel good. Thank you again for letting us read your work...keep writing...

excellent but maybe add in more of the engineering bit in as it was interesting

I love your stories. Thank you.

I do love reading your stories. They are fun, exciting and sexy.

An entertaining story...but a continuous aggregation of women made me loose track of who some of them were by the time everyone returned home.

An overflow of shopping trips. Perhaps a writing tool to appease or sedate an American audience - note my use of ´an´ - the author´s distinction between it and ´a´ eludes this author. That´s not the only frequent grammatical misstep. Overall, however, the language is good, and above Literotica custom.

The police in France likely would not come in screaming "Police!"

"Gendarmes!," maybe...possibly "Sûreté!"

I really enjoy your work. The fact that you carefully and skillfully develop thoughts and story sets your works apart. For example, when many authors submitting work to Literotica might make a (somewhat over used) phrase like “...he/she clearly was new to some form of oral sex but made up for it with enthusiasm...”, you gave us:

“The brunette could tell Cat was inexperienced but she actually found that more exciting as it proved how much the woman wanted to be with her. There was no hesitation in her touch just an abundance of enthusiasm. Not always correctly applied but so deliciously genuine!”

It is a pleasure to read your work.

Bad: "Sorry for ruining our date night. I got lost returning from the bathroom and accidentally broke up a white slavery ring in the basement next door."

Good: "But hey! I don't need a hospital or doctor this time! ....Um, a wide, 6 inch long bandage might be a good idea though"

Thanks for the great ride!

Really enjoyed this (continuing) segment of Ben Shepherd's Life. But for a two-week stay in France, did there need to be 12 Violent Episodes involving Ben, and EIGHT men left dead, mainly thanks to Ben? I hope his next cycle of life is much kinder to him, surely his ravaged body can't keep taking all the damage it is receiving. I do wonder if at some future time his original wife (Wendy) might resurface? Perhaps his forthcoming vacation trip to Hawaii? Anyway, Thanx Again for the Great Read!

What a great story. Perhaps a little too many reminders about his huge cock. And his sexual stamina is truly a little out of reach for mere mortals. However it truly was a memorable read. Well written and well researched. I march on to Bens next adventure as my penis slaps against my ankles.

...and it is what it is, but adding Psycho Cop Chanel and Maneater Margaux took away from the main story arc. They don’t fit well and add nothing of interest, the former actually taking away from Ben’s relationship with Cat, and the latter cheapening his relationship with everyone else. Is he going to fall for every damaged, entitled acting woman he meets now? Ben walks around with a target on his back, and seems to attract every miscreant in any region he enters (and of course takes them all down). I also don’t understand the scar fetish. Entertaining story but it’s too long and should have been wrapped up by now. His emotional/psychological issues seem endless.

Sometimes the characters annoy me greatly, but hen the feel good comes back and I know the author has done well.

Scores 5/5

Not realistic or believable in any way.

Another episode in Ben Shepherd's teeth brushing documentary, hooray.

Am I missing something? I actually read the first 3 parts on Kindle but I don't recall a scene with Hannah and Ben sleeping together prior when did this happen?

The story is good but this has turned into Batman comic. Every time he turns around he fighting someone getting shot at or stabbed. Saving people around every turn. It’s too much. It’s like you not sure how to write the story and start jamming full of craziest stuff you can think. 21 pages just for chapter 2. His heroism of the first segment was spread out over years and months. We had other significant events happen between these things. Now we have 6 altercations within a week. Stories this big work when you have other POVs. Even have bad guys and what they are doing. That will be good stuff to make a long story. Other than the rinse repeat it is good story. I like it.

The one thing I’m really getting tired of is how trouble comes, the bad guy is on the loose but everyone just goes on their way. The kids are left out to go where ever. The shakir thing they just find young girls that have been taken. Cat still lets her supermodel daughters out on their own. Knowing Ben just messed up dudes operation they have no thought of revenge. He already seen the girls one time. They would be prime targets. Ben don’t do anything to make them stay near. He constantly saving women but never thinks to say hey maybe everyone should stay inside today. I was loving your story but it is really getting me pissed at how careless you have made them. If bad stuff had never happened before I would get them thinking all was well. It’s been constant trouble and they don’t have one damn thought of maybe we shouldn’t fucking let our fucking kids go to beach alone. Sure they in group but never know when one breaks off. I just want to pull these adults out of the story and scream how stupid can you get.

Why has Cat started to be into women? It’s not just a fascination but something that should have been wrote from the beginning. That don’t just happen after 40 years.

Skipped ahead so this is still fresh in my mind. Don’t like the cat and Chanel bit. NOT A GAY THING. I personally do not care who anyone wants to be with. Love is good no matter where it comes from. My problem is it doesn’t feel right for the story. Also Chanel is obsessed with her past lover that is almost identical to Cat. So I highly doubt she would be ok sharing Cat with Ben if it goes they make a real relationship. No matter what you have them say about loving Ben it makes it seem they are latching on to him until something else arrives. Don’t know where this goes but this is just impressions. You might write out of it.

And Margaux (whatever) don’t like her entering story either. I mean come on he has enough ladies, young and his age.

dude this story was written years ago

Another good… very good one! Looking forward to read the next one… no, make that next two. Thank-you again for your writing talent.

NICE!!! * * * * *

I'm glad I'm not alone in my distaste for the Chanel and Margeaux character arcs. They just seem unnecessary and forced for no particular reason. Giving another love interest outside their core group to Cat just feels odd. Especially to someone obsessed with how Cat looks like her dead lover. There is no way Chanel would accept the lifestyle Cat has with Ben.

The Margeaux arc isn't needed at all. The dude has basically a harem of women at home, why would he want another that he sees every few months for a booty call? That's player behavior and it's been cemented over and over that Ben is not promiscuous this just doesn't fit with how his character has been written.

I was also cringing with the laise-faire attitude they all had of roaming around even after all the dangerous shit happened to them. The only time there was any concern was when his fame became a thing? Very irresponsible.

My last complaint was with the statue that Stephanie made....what would have been wrong with putting pants on or just no cock and balls? That seems deeply invasive especially when the model doesn't want it shown that way. That was not a "fitting tribute to a hero" that was exploitation.

But even with those gripes, I can't fault the storytelling as a whole and can't in good conscience give this less than 5 stars.

While I can see lots of "includism" in the full lesbian arc of Chanel and the 2 sets of gays in the relatives of Gabriella, Chanel as a lover was a bit of a stretch. Yes, with all the love interests, Margaux was over the brim. There is the allowance for creators self indulgence but a good creator might also consider whetting the appetite of his/her audience. Audiences are fickle, give an exciting right at the edge mix and they will love you, go a bit too far and they turn fickle pretty quickly. Happy hunting for the sweet spot in the middle.

Ben has learned some of the dangers that traveling has of broadening his horizons, ... and his family too. '-) TTFN

Good thing he is UBER Rich!!!

I don’t think I commented after the “Shepherd”series. I apologize as I have liked both your series so far. You have done an i credible amount of character and plot development in both series. I don’t always agree with some of the actions your characters are involved in and the amount of violence a Navy Seal would never get involved in, I understand it was necessary for the stories. I do have 2 issues with the stories; one is not knowing where this whole thing started (county) and second, your use of British or Aussie dialect in a story apparently set in the U.S. your use of “Cheque” and other words had me confused. Also, you desperately need a good or better auditor than you have now. Too many missing pronouns, incorrect verb usage and misspellings make the story flow roughly instead of flowing as smoothly as it should. Keep up the good work.

Glad I'm not the only one disappointed with Chanel's inclusion into their lives from a romantic standpoint. Ben has made it clear to the young ones that if they find love other than him, he'll encourage it. But someone as dedicated as Cat leaving him, no matter what she says, is going to break him.

Catherine clearly never loved Ben. She fell in love with someone after 5 secs after that person previously harassed and even assaulted the man that "she loved." How fake can you get?

The trip to France increased Ben's fame and his family, .... he will have lots of renovation projects to keep him busy at home for a while, (how many neighboring homes is Ben going to buy?), ... Ben has two new adopted daughters, and a natural child on the way, (daddy worries). -- And what's with all the hair color description changes for Lucy, ... she started as Auburn, then Brunette, then back to Auburn, and most recently she was described as brown haired, ... but she has always been a busty, hot babe that is a submissive that loves her Dom, Ben. The BurntRedstone universe is Awesome! ;-) TTFN

Thus ends the worst chapter in the Ben Shepherd saga. Where the author destroys the character arcs and core values that he spent the entire first Ashburn Court series establishing.

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Margaux is introduced as a love interest, with no emotional connection to Ben, against the wishes and warnings of all those Ben supposedly loves, basically establishing a contractual booty call with someone who admits to ruining relationships. This after repeatedly beating us, the reader, over the head with the "this harem only works if we all love each other, with respect and no jealousy" mantra for the entirety of the story to this point. Ben knows this will hurt those women he cares about but does it anyway, entirely contradicting his established character motivations.

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Introducing Chanel as a lesbian love interest for Catherine, when she held no hint of lesbian tendencies except for the one threeway, coincidentally in this same chapter, with Ben where she and Gabriella shared a kiss is ridiculous. If anything, she should have had more experiences with Gabriella whom she cares deeply for if she was feeling this way. Just suddenly feeling love for a stranger, another woman, is lazy writing. Plus, peeling away one of the core members of Bens harem already goes against the whole fantasy of the "man being the focus of all his women" and feels like a betrayal. Also, expecting us to believe this new character would be ok with Catherine still sleeping with Ben is equally ridiculous.

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Why the marriage proposal to Tina? Again, made no sense and contradicts the whole harem fantasy with its established guidelines in this world the author created.

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The decision for Stephanie to sculpt Ben completely nude is also dumb and she would have had no artistic reason to do so. The shy and private Ben would not have posed that way to begin with, especially with someone he just met.

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Ben shredded his back and wrenched his shoulders but didnt go to a hospital and was perfectly fine within a day or two...sure, completely believable.

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Sophia and Rachael lust after Ben...get him in bed, and then they basically disappear from his life without another mention...guess Ben isnt that good in bed after all.

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There were a few bright spots in this France saga...the cable car ride up and down the mountain was beautifully written, but all these other terrible decisions completely ruined this chapter and mark it as the worst of all the Ben Shepherd stories.

I can understand why some are upset about the storyline inconsistencies. I noticed some errors as well and frowned once or twice. I also have begun reading countless atrocious stories here that I never finished. It is a free site after all. I don't even bother to vote unless I can give 5 stars. Overall this one is entertaining enough to continue reading. I'm curious about the changes of direction and how the storyline will evolve. The depictions of the various bad guys aren't realistic though. The story would not be fun if they were.

I would like to point out that most human beings constantly change their own narratives and I think the author was attempting to reflect that. I actually once knew someone like Cat, who over the course of 30 years slowly devolved into a hard drinking, coarse man hater. With help from the wrong people.

It may be the author has decided to change the story direction. There are so many different characters though, that delving into why a character changes or providing more detail can become tedious, especially as this is free fantasy fiction. That said, I doubt I would actually pay to read more by this author based on what I've read so far. That may change. 5 stars each so far.

I am a big fan of stories with some sex scenes as opposed to sexstories that are sex scenes with some story. The longer the better. The story about Mr. Ed and the story The Shepherd of Ashburn court is something I really enjoyed reading instead of watching Netflix etc. Including the parts that made me sad.

In A Shepherd in France there is an unwarranted/explained change in Ben's personality. Also, contradictive. He is supposedly strongly against casual sex yet he beds Lucy only after a couple of days. This is a small disappointment. I like Lucy and I hoped her to be added to the harem down the line.

Otherwise I enjoyed the first ~90% of A Shepherd in France as much as The Shepherd of Ashburn court which was well written and had no turn off:s for me. For both stories I had to occasionally edit out typos or do some formatting for more pleasant reading. Just a minor issue.

The increased rate of villains being added to the story in A Shepherd in France is something I liked a lot. I find it fairly amusing how Ben keeps adding scars. I do not mind that old events are repeatedly retold in the story because I enjoy the reaction from characters who hear it for the first time. Even though most reactions have been a bit short/glossed over.

I love it when people put Ben in a bad mood and his women show off their relationship with him. For instance like the gas stop when some dudes heckled Ben for driving the fishtank. I also find it amusing when he becomes ill from too much praise and attention. The lucky bastard needs to suffer some for balance' sake.

My favourite part in A Shepherd in France is probably when Ben steals some of Tina's food. <3

When the date with Margaux began I had to stop reading because it was too unpleasant. Needed to go do something else to get back in a good mood. Ben explains he is for open relationships, which he clearly is not because it was for instance proven with the whole Tina debacle. Ben uses Cat/Chanel as "proof" he is for open relationships, but hardly the same thing as one of his women being with another male.

Ben has never shown sexual greed(conquer more women) prior to this. He has not courted anyone or initiated sex with anyone who he did not already have significant history with. He has barely shown any interest in Margaux. No unusual physical attraction. No emotional connection. No shared interests. Margaux was not in need of emotional support. Not in need of economical support. Not in physical danger. And Ben has barely spent any time talking to Margaux.

Ben sexually engaging with Margaux at that point is a big disappointment.

I am not against the Cat/Chanel relationship. But I skipped reading it because I am not interested in female/female scenes. It also diminishes the Ben/Cat relationship a little bit. A small disappointment. The protagonist's women having sex with other males is an extreme turn off for me. So I am dreading possible future events. I only enjoy "One story. One male.".

I hope Ben after some time adds Karen and Penny to the harem. Really weird if he denies them but not Lucy.

Okay, I'm rereading through this story for the 3rd or 4th time and I thought I would add my observations to the mess of comments about this chapter/story. Firstly, I found myself dreading reading through this 2nd part, knowing what I know about Stephanie and Margaux (but I'll give no spoilers). I also think that the introduction of Chanel into the 'group' as a love interest of Catherine was incredibly rushed, with virtually the whole of chapter 1 painting her personality with an obsessive and vindictive brush, with only a faint reversal near the ending of the chapter. Apart from being beautiful there really isn't anything redeeming about her to the group and it should be that Catherine is defensive against her for her repeated attacks on Ben. So when she suddenly has an attraction to Gabriella when in Bed with Ben, and this then opens up her sexuality and she transfers her affection to Chanel a few days later, it's a bit jarring. She shouldn't really have had time to come to terms with anything, she's with her kids and her boyfriend, and then latches onto an attractive woman who thought her boyfriend was a murderer? Maybe it would have worked over a longer time-frame or if she was alone and had less to think about but it clashes with the situation they are in, at least to me.

Ben's opening up of being sexually available after his speech about not liking casual sex, still rings true to me here, despite what others have stated. If we think of Ben as being emotionally damaged and being physically affectionate, as has been stated previously by medical professionals within the tales, then we can think of sex as a way for Ben to share his emotions and physicality at the same time. He's telling them he loves them physically, which is what these characters want, and he's a 'people pleaser'. When he slept with Lucy after knowing her for only a little time, it was with the encouragement of Tina who has his entire trust and will always have the best intentions for him. Catherine's daughters are already part of the group, they are loved and accepted, and their mother had already given tacit approval. Stephanie was slept with in order for her to heal, to bring comfort and affection after a nasty experience, but personally I think it was a mistake. She didn't know Ben, and still doesn't, she only has her perception of him and betrayed his 'trust' by exposing him with her statue. Finally, Margaux. Margaux is a mess that wants love desperately but had already given up. Ben is her lifeline and she is clinging to him throughout this chapter. My take is that Ben can see that she is hurting and that it triggering his 'white knight' tendencies so much that he is blinded to all the dangers she poses for him and his other relationships.

This is all happening whilst Ben is a little adrift mentally, he's recently changed his perception of 'love' and what that means relationship-wise, is in another country being exposed to new experiences. He's surrounded by people all the time, with very little alone time. He's going through a mental crisis of repressed memories surfacing, constantly shifting his stability and leaving him emotionally unstable/open. There's going to be some unsafe decisions being made and I can understand that, it would be a very confusing time for him. He's fulfilling multiple roles within his group, provider, protector, lover, friend, parent and positive influence. He's spread thin. So I can write off a number of 'poor decisions' with this mind set in place.

I don't think that A Shepherd In France was a great story, maybe too much happened at once? But it is a transitional story, it's a huge turning point in the overarching Ben Shepherd saga and I liked it.

...So much so that I've read it multiple times. :P

I don’ have the words to express my thanks to BurntRedstone for both Mr. Ed’s and Ben Shepherd’s stories. Five Stars simply aren’t enough. Onward to A Shepherd Afield!

🙄🤔😉😁👍👍👍🎉🤷👁️👁️

Intrigue, suspenseful, fun, mystery, sexy, and a great ending. Thank you.

One of my favorite stories. A Gardner's Touch being my favorite of all time. Not to keen on the Lesbo part but I'll live. No, I will never accept gay relations. I never went to my nieces wedding to her lover and she knew why and hugged me still. She's a good kid, just mixed up in the head! 5 BIG ASS FUCKING HUGE FLAMING NOVA STARS once again. Thanks!

I have really been enjoying my re-read of "A Shepherd in France", .... after the Effiel Tower ring ceremony, ... and later that annoying little bronze statue, ... adopting Karen and Penny, ... a few bad guys getting shot, ... a hero-worshipping taxi driver, ... sights and photos of museums and historical landmarks (thanks to Daniel), and some dancing too, ... and now the French Police can breathe a little easier with that super lucky / unlucky Ben having gone back to the States, ... lots happened on their trip, ... ;-) ttfn

Again, a wonderful story. 4 stars only because of editing or lack thereof.

How can I justify accepting polyamory as normal loving family by people clearly not normal?

Loved this series as I did the first.

Could do with some editing but still 5*. Awful lot of growling going on, need a synonym.