February Sucks - My Thoughts/Review

Let me start off by prefacing that there is little to no structure to this review and it is just me reviewing what I believe to be the most successful story to inspire the most sequels as far as I've seen on Literotica. I'm not the best writer on this site so I am not going to attempt to make my own sequel, but I will give my perspective on GeorgeAndersons masterpiece, some of the sequels, the best ones in my opinion, and give a short idea on what I would have done if I even had an inkling of the prose some of these masterful writers have.

Without further ado, let me get started.

GeorgeAnderson's February Sucks:

What else can be said about this story that the countless number of sequels haven't done already. The story kept me rooted to every word on the page and I could honestly not stop once the inciting incident occurred. Although the concept is far from original, (Unintended Consequences by BigGuy33 having the closest concept executed differently) and not even being the only story with this many sequels (Looking at you RichardGerald and your Another Love series), the sheer concept and permission by the author lends this story to have such a diverse multiverse of different endings and even retcons.

I like stories like these where I can feel the turmoil and sorrow from the main character having to deal from a situation that they cannot so simply remove themselves from, nor have any good answers or even solutions to fix themselves or the problem. In fact, that is what in my opinion made the original so interesting, the fact that Linda truly did see her time with Marc as something wonderful totally aside from Jim's love.

I called bs multiple times throughout her explanation, but could definitely understand the idea behind her perspective. Hers having come across more genuine than previous cheating wives who just did not convince me so much on why they enjoyed their infidelity. Its not just that they believe it, but that they put it in such a manner that is so convincing for as a reader. It was like Amy strong arming Henry in A Painful Confession by Cinical, where it feels like she really is in such control over him that its completely unfair.

With GA's Linda, she comes across as a coward who took her chance before she could be stopped but was able to perfectly compartmentalize between Marc and Jim. Am I saying I enjoyed that it happened regardless, no. Because ultimately I felt for Jim and his pain because of the damage left behind by such a horrible action, but I don't entirely demonize Linda for it as it is what made the story.

I like stories like this where essentially the mc is forced into a corner, having to calculate their decisions as carefully as they can before they can come up with a solution, or rather, just see how long they can hang in there before it becomes to much or another incident occurs that forces action. Because me, personally, I enjoy those kind of slowburns, where the protagonist explains in vivid detail how the situation is terrible and how they try their best to get through it, when its possible and when it isn't.

Which brings me to my next point. I believe that the way these characters are written, I believe and root for reconciliation for them. They clearly have good chemistry throughout the story, before, during, and after their ordeal. Linda seems to understand just how terrible a calculation she made in thinking her marriage would have been safe, but ultimately I believe that their should be a pay off.

Which I will get to as soon as I talk about and as I talk about my favorite sequels.

As I've said, I like the idea that Jim and Linda do reconcile after this ordeal. But I want it to be a long and dragged out uphill battle because there is a satisfaction in what I believe to perceive two people who are genuinely in love. The problem being the cheating that one shows remorse for and the one who was wronged, trying to get through it as best they can. Many people and many stories disagree and make it a very prominent part in their sequels, versions, or whatever that make it much much worse than what GA intended.

That being said, I loathe BTB versions of the story and the whole idea in general. I used to enjoy maybe the occasional 'gone with everything when you're back' trope, but that is as far as my satisfaction for this tag goes. I guess it stems from my dislike for violence in general, but there was a time I did enjoy the BTB now and then, but then there were the ones where they sold them to traffickers, third world brothels, murdered, etc and I just got disgusted by it.

Not only that, but I'm going to say it, and those that read this tag are going to hate me for it, but BTB is so basic. Like, it literally boils down to such a black and white idea that in my opinion is amateur and boring. The characters are so simple and diluted to (in almost all stories) hubby loyal and good, and cheating wifey bad and a whore. Like real life does not work like that. Better writers know to included and build up, or even mention flaws in both of them that leads to the eventual cheating, and although the cheating party is more often the one in the bad, there is nothing about this mobster/ex military/has connections type of trope that just makes someone and the lover go away. In my opinion it is very Gary Stu Mary Sue-ish.

There is little to nothing compelling, nothing about the human emotion, relationship, love, or any of the other things that form the foundation of what a marriage was before. And not only that, but they genuinely often go against the original intentions of the story. So although there are the BTB February Sucks sequels, none of them get so much as a mention by name or author. With that out of the way, lets get to my favorites.

My three favorite versions of the story, that I know so far, are the following.

1. johnadp's February Sucks Next Chapter.

2. Kalimaxos' February Sucks - Linda's Choice.

3. BlackHeart93's February Sucks - Another Version

First off, johnadp? More like johnDAP him up because that's what I gotta do to him for making this fucking banger of a sequel for February Sucks. Because one thing that ultimately bothered me about GA's original was that Jim simply understood what Linda had with Marc just by imagining himself with Ellen. The manipulation, or rather attempted manipulation, I did not mind and I'll get into how that can be more interesting later. I just hated knowing that ultimately, Linda came out by the skin of her teeth, but in the furthest recesses of her mind, she would ultimately have her night and morning with Marc to remember, whereas all Jim has is imagining being with a hired woman there to test him. Yes, Linda was able to turn down Marc multiple times, but I just...seriously poor Jim. And this story takes advantage of the "What if" where Jim goes with Helen.

Here, not only does Jim get his confidence, swagger, and mojo back, but it truly does drive home to Linda how visceral and heartwrenching her actions were. I will sound shallow and vindictive for this, but yea, I like it when the wronged characters get their pound of flesh in return/when the scales are evened.

Also, it totally, for me anyway, switches up the roles and my emotions for the characters. This story managed to do it so right in fact and I felt bad for Linda because whereas she was able to reject Marc and ultimately prove her chance to be Jim and only Jim's, Jim is succumbing to Ellen's raw sexuality, leaving him in a point where I no longer feel bad for him because he is taking his revenge way too far to even be on the moral high ground anymore. Yes, Linda initiated, but she ultimately proved herself.

That is why I both love this story, but hate the delivery. Nothing wrong with what anything johnadp did. In fact, his story stands out for being able to pull this off so well, but in the back of my head I have this idea to what could lead to be the perfect version (for me at least) of February Sucks, which involves the next two, which imo are the uncontested best sequels of FS.

I would be lying if I said I read Kalimaxo's version solely for the plot. At first it started that way, but the guy manages to write some of the best erotic stories from the first person perspectives I've ever come across on this site. He truly gets into the heads of the character and exploits every sordid, dirty, nasty sexual detail he can and I love it. I rubbed it out multiple times Linda and Marcs encounters because he's that good. I hate Marc as a homewrecker, but goddamn, if the seedy writing isn't good. And his love scenes are good as well when Jim and Linda do it too, they're cathartic the chemistry is all there! Oh look at that, I'm compartmentalizing love and sex like these LW wives out here!

Anywho, what sets his version apart from the others is the fact that not only is it from Linda's perspective, but changes have been made to the original that makes chapters 1-3 just an absolute thrill ride. Instead of it being a one and done, Linda does it repeatedly behind Jim's back, through some fault of his own, and does it multiple times with Marc, until he shows his true colors. What I love and hate about that is that its an interesting take on why Linda ends it in this universe, but the question does stay with the reader as much as with Linda "If he hadn't done what he did, would she still be seeing him?" and thats so compelling and thought provoking to me because I root for Jim, but this version just flips the script.

Notice how I said that I only mentioned chapters 1-3. Because in my opinion, 4 is ultimately more a less of a recap, but with an ending I just did not fuck with. After a climactic encounter and after everything's been going on it turns out that Jim and Dee had a thing (?) which I thought was a terrible stray of the original story. In my opinion it did not seem that interesting, plus as I said, I am a Jim stan, or in support of him because I just came to support him after his struggle. I know he isn't flawless, but to have this huge of a flaw for his character just derails his original likeability. And like I said I genuinely like their chemistry in most of the stories and do believe they could have reconciled, but thats the crux that holds this version back for me. Because after all that, I figured Jim scored greatly with Bella getting involved in their lives, and Linda having them be in a better place than before through her actions and growth as a character. It really just seemed like such a cliff dive of what could have been the best version of a February Sucks Sequel.

Which leads to the sequel that isn't necessarily better than, but in that same level as the previous one. And that is BlackHeart93's Another Version. The previous one had a semi good 'pound of flesh' trope, but this one almost perfects it. After Jim returns home, he makes the bold decision to leave to gain his confidence back after the disaster that was the last day of February. He gains his confidence back, he takes action rather than become the side character of his own story, and it works out well for him and just feels good to read about him getting his groove back.

Now, what makes this so interesting is that he manages to make, what I saw, as a really good hybrid of Separate Vacations (DanielQSteele1) and Boilerplate Rendering (TheUnoriginalist). And by that, I mean it has both a great slow burn of a read from the wronged husbands perspective that leads him to take his time and calculate his next moves carefully, mixed in with the man who gains his confidence back by proving to himself that he is still his own individual. Which I LOVE! Because yea, Jim deserves to get some after all the shit he goes through in every version and sequel of the story I believe.

Although this one, though written better, still suffers from the same problem as johnadp's version where at some point Jim just loses the moral high ground. Because not only did he have that pleasure cruise, which one could say is not evening the odds as they were women on his level compared to Marc's status with Linda's, but he did in fact still have Ellen for much longer than Linda's night and morning, who managed to rub it into Linda's face while she was down. Not only that, but it has an open ending of 'will they, won't they' reconcile, which I'm not a fan of.

And that's the issue I ultimately have with the sequels. There is this lack of a balance. Between both parties. It's either Linda still has her memory with Marc while Jim, though ready to forgive and move, I just have an issue with the unevenness of their situation. Or that Jim gets too far ahead in his revenge in his journey to return to Linda. It's like its almost there in these stories, but they just miss out majorly for me.

Which is why here I would like to explain how taking the best ideas of my favorites can be used to make MY perfect sequel, in which I am comfortable just writing as is in this format because I have a hard enough time finishing stories or even writing them as well as these pro's as is.

Anyways!

I do like the idea that Linda can have more than one night with Marc, and that ultimately it has to be without Jim's knowing. Now I hear "Won't that negate the whole originality of the story?" to which my answer is yes and no. I say this because I simply do like the way it's formatted to more than just a fling between Marc and Linda, to cook up that delicious slow burn for later. Minus the Jim cheating with Dee subplot. The emotional turmoil from before with the lying guy online can stay. I like that.

So Linda and Marc have more than just the one night and it can carry off into essentially an affair. Emotionally speaking too, because although I hate it, Kalimaxos does give them good chemistry.

The changes I would make from that piece, however, would be that Mark is able to still control himself and not harm Linda the way he did, and manages to carry out more times with her. And this can affect Linda's life in such great ways.

Like what if Jim buys merch from Marcs team, or rather a jersey of Marc himself. Something like is so deliciously evil, but I'd write it so that it eats at Linda's mind, knowing this kind of fucked up harm it brings to Jim.

Another thing I'd keep is that Bella as a character, the ruthless corporate bitch out to get her pound of flesh is a great addition. So Marcs wife as a character would still be great, this can then lead to her essentially giving Linda the same ultimatum she did, but all the while, Linda is thinking about breaking it off, because the affair is affecting her life at home. Jim noticing changes here and there, her strange behavior, etc, This is a better idea for Linda than simply "last night changed nothing, I'm still the same Linda" idea that sounds interesting, but this could be done just as good if not better.

Ultimately, this could lead to the same circumstances, as Bella getting her revenge on Marc and Linda and Jim still gets his throuple relationship with his new model wife, and her corporate model boss.

Happy ending? Wrong!

I would have some kind of kerfuffle on part of Bella that she fucks up or maybe Marc and Jim have a chance encounter. Or maybe it could even be that whole original event at the gala from the original, with all this carried over. Idk!

The point is, the cat's out of the bag and it is an absolute devastation to Jim. There can be a whole page written about him realizing and putting the pieces together, and another one where he confronts Linda on it. I can already imagine the heart wrenching dialogue and hurt shouts of a distraught Jim as everything up until that point is a lie and he just breaks into Linda. Can you imagine?

"Oh my god...I cheered for that Asshole while you were fucking him!"

"You had me prime you to take his cock up your ass!"

"Bella was in on it too?!"

Like, I would hold my head and go holy shit if I read that as part of the story. This can then be followed by Jim essentially breaking the throuple with him Linda and Bella, because he would just feel like a mortal that was just manipulated viciously by his own wife and her lovers.

I don't believe this evens the scales at ALL. He was just lied to by two people who he loved and grew very attached to. He can't deal with all that. Which would then involve the next thing.

Ellen.

She is the outlier in the original and in many stories. But rather than having her be a trap to test his fidelity, she could genuinely be someone he meets out of circumstance that they just happen to hit off spectacularly. And this I could see happen one of two ways. One, maybe through Bella and Linda's corporate connections that they might know beforehand. Or two, Jim takes that singles cruise fucks a few ladies here and there, and meets Ellen there wherein they just collapse into each other like clashing stars.

All the while Linda is comforted by Bella and Dee and there other friends. With them saying things like.

"It'll be alright, he'll come back."

"He needs time to collect himself."

"What you guys have is special."

Which I believe would be true, but that doesn't negate that in that moment, Linda doesn't believe, or it doesn't help her as she is frantically worried about Jim. Her Jim.

Even as the cruise ends, Jim, not minding that Ellen is an escort, in fact, she is the direct parallel of Marc in terms of experience, social status, and sexual prowess. Here is where the original plot can even come in a fun way.

Let's say Jim returns home to his wife and kids. Let's say in front of his kids, he's calm and collected, but he has that conversation with Linda in private, in a scene reminiscent of BlackHeart's version where he tells her how things are going to be, but the twist is, it also mirrors the original in a twisted fashion.

Jim believes their marriage can be saved. Of that there is no doubt. But in order to do so, he needs Linda's cooperation with something. He has her write the famous note from the original, only this time, with all the crazy shit on top of it all before everything. This new letter has to include a summary of all the sexual depravities Linda partook with Marc, to serve as hate fuck fuel to Jim as he tells her he will be just as sexually liberated and wanton with Ellen as she was with Marc. Second, I feel like a new letter like this can both make Linda come to more grips with the very real consequences of her actions and the possibility of what she can lose with Jim, furthering her reasons to explain her why she truly loves him, and maybe even do a complete 180 where she can't possibly justify her actions, but explains them anyway on paper the paper. She can even write the bit of his handkerchiefs getting ruined.

Hell, you can even mirror the merch thing of Marc with Linda inadvertently buying something from a business Ellen owns, like candles, or decor, or something.

Ultimately, the purpose of this not is so that Jim is able to make one of his own throughout his time with Ellen. This is what I believe to be the equilibrium that can fix their problems and the crux's that I've had some of the previous versions of the story.

Because ultimately, I want Jim to be able to truly put Linda in the same place as he was. And have him be just as strong as he when she broke it off with Marc, (or maybe that could be the new inciting incident where maybe Jim witnesses the exchange perhaps maybe idk). This would prove to him that she does love him and he takes it into consideration her actions, both good and bad, and applies them into his predicament with Ellen. Because just as good a chemistry as Linda had with Marc that Jim has with Ellen, I ultimately do believe that Linda and Jim are one another's soulmates.

And thats another thing that a lot of these stories, even my favorites, get wrong about Marc. Yes he is a homewrecker, but he is intentionally written worse than in the original, by being some douche with a God complex, or the guy that forgets about Linda when he's just a womanizer with a huge dick complex. I don't buy that he doesn't remember Linda, she needs to be somewhat important to him, as Jim is to Ellen.