Savoy Books: The Tides of Lust

		The Tides of Lust Samuel R Delany 1980 193mm x 125mm Soft covers First UK publication 176pp ISBN 0 86130 016 5

Hugo Award winning author Samuel Delany charts the search for erogenous gratification of a diverse collection of people including an insatiable black sea captain, a dangerously young slave mistress, an aimless drifter and a supreme artist of the perverse. Long out of print (Lancer Books, 1973) and eagerly awaited by Delany fans when we republished it. 'The Black Book', as it became known in the UK book trade, was to have been first in Savoy's ill-fated 'Black Jacket' line of over-the-edge fantasy erotica. In the planning stages were works by Michael Fleisher (Chasing Hairy), Philip José Farmer, and Charles Platt (Sweet Evil). It was not to be. Members of 'God's Cop' James Anderton's vice squad spectacularly seized three thousand copies of The Tides of Lust from our offices in October 1980. Shortly afterwards four thousand copies were recalled by retailers John Menzies from shops across the country after the title was removed by police from a Bristol store. Savoy Books Ltd went into liquidation in 1981. The persistent police harassment of Savoy and our bookshops—which had been carrying on since we started operations in 1976—escalated on publication of The Tides of Lust and The Gas. David Britton was jailed for these titles in May 1982.

One of Marc Almond's favourite books! Other Almond 'links' to Savoy: he has recorded with, and produced, PJ Proby (Yesterday Has Gone, a track off his and Jim's Legend album—EMI Premier, 1996, and featuring the My Life Story Orchestra—was a Melody Maker 'Single of the Week' courtesy of the Kenickie girls); he is an acquaintance of Savoy comics artist Kris Guidio and, of course, Savoy got PJ to demolish Tainted Love in 1995.

Eighteen years after publication, the Savoy editions of The Tides Of Lust and The Gas, were listed in the UK's Bizarre magazine as two out of five of the most obscene books to have been published in Britain. Notoriety travels.

• A few copies of this title are still available. See the Orders page for purchase details.

"'Not,' as the saying goes, 'for the squeamish'. OK bedtime reading for the rest of us though."

IAN YOUNG, Body Politic

"A Faustian diorama of physical pleasures and mental obsessions. Few sex novels are willing to show the mindlessness of sex with all the manners and decorum totally varnished, and this one must surely be noted for the fact that it does just that."

RICHARD E GEISS, The Alien Critic