Treat Yourself to Naughty Paris

Ladies (and gentlemen), it's time for a little break. Time for a few minutes' hiatus from the news, from fretting over the Dow Jones, the campaign mudslinging and Tina Fey lookalikes. Forget dwelling on the impending gloom of autumn, the holiday decorations you just don't have the get-up-and-go to get-up and get.

Ladies, we all know that reading is the ultimate cheap thrill, the easiest way to escape the daily doldrums. Some of us may read bodice-ripper steamy pseudo-novels. Some may read of exotic travel in guides to foreign lands. Some may read self-improvement books. But if you've ever wondered how to really relish the life -- or even a moment or two -- of no-holds-barred romance and seduction à la française, please treat yourself to the guilt-free, oh-so-guilty pleasure of reading Naughty Paris: A Lady's Guide to the Sexy City.

Naughty is in the eye of the beholder, of course. But Heather Stimmler-Hall's new book is a gem. A gold mine of how-to's and where-to's for any woman traveling to or living in the City of Love, or even dreaming of it. Call me jaded, but I found this guide to be an excellent primer -- with precious little to be titillated about -- on how to find your inner femme fatale. Your naughty may be another's nice, but this book is an unapologetic romp into the foundations and fundamentals of being a healthy, gorgeous woman who attracts the opposite sex. How to understand the French dating and pick-up codes. Where to buy the best lingerie for your money. Toys. Boys. Seduction poise. But it's not all that naughty, really. It's just authentic and French: there are even chapters on history of French women, literature, museums. An intelligent, cultivated woman is, of course, the most alluring.

Admit it, most of us appreciate such lucsious advice. We devour it. We're just not supposed to acknowledge it. Naughty Paris rips the bodice off the false-prudery and gives you all the steamy details. (If your prim sensibilities find the end chapters on certain clubs and activities offensive or embarrassing, just discreetly exacto them out.) As I read through the book, I thought, "If Mae West were alive today, she would have written the foreword and the jacket blurbs. Heck, she would have written the book."

Naughty Paris has plenty of pointers for flirting à la française. I have one flirt tip to add: read this book on a plane, a train, or in a café, and trust me, you'll have one of the best conversation starters a femme fatale wannabe could ever want.