Three More Wishes by Sean Michael

 

Three More Wishes is the sequel to Three Wishes --  (My review of Three Wishes).

I loved Three Wishes, and had high hopes for Three More Wishes. Unfortunately, the intensity just wasn't there for me in this second book. I'll give the blurb and then explain.

James, Guard, and Damien are back, still running their resort, where every fantasy, no matter how perverse, may come true. The three men continue working out the bumps in their threesome, but when it comes to their clients, they’re a well-oiled machine. Which works perfectly for the three new couples arriving in paradise.

Cameron is losing his sight, and he knows that he'll be useless once it goes completely. He's cashed in everything to leave his life behind for one last fling. Xander is on the island for a fantasy, too. He's looking for someone to love on, someone to care for and Cameron seems to be the perfect match, but can they make it work?

As a writer, Ben always writes the script, which is why his fantasy is to give up control. He thinks his fantasy can’t be fulfilled, so he settles in for a relaxing vacation on an island paradise instead. Is he really as safe as he thinks he is?

Finally, Leo is a consummate Top, always wanting better his technique. He wants to know what it's like to be a sub, but it won’t be easy for a Dominant to bottom for five days. Leo will do his dead level best to measure up; his only worry is who the boys chose to be his fantasy Top…

The story of the island's owners was sweet, but not terribly erotic for me. It fell flat, and I'm not sure I can explain why.

Cameron and Xander didn't really do the whole BDSM thing. There was some D/s, and Xander made a great service Top, but I found myself skimming some of the sex scenes.

The kidnapping scene started out great, and then fizzled. I loved the first part of it, but the ending was... well, I found myself skimming the sex scenes again.

I thought the scene with the Top wanting to learn what it was like to sub would be the best, and it started out that way, but then, once again, it just kind of fizzled out for me. I liked both men, enjoyed the way the romance worked out, but David kept promising "do that again and you'll get spanked", over and over and over and over and over again. He never did spank him. I have no respect for Dom's who don't follow through, and I was surprised that Leo could respect that. In fact, he didn't, since he kept doing what he was doing, and never did really fall into the role he'd come there to learn about.



BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 1 of 3 
• Dominance and Submission:  2 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: 0 of 3
• Extra Point: No

As for the writing elements plot pacing prose dialogue character development world-building

• Book Rating: Three More Wishes: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 3 of 10
• Heat Level: 2 of 5

Pink Ribbon by Jude Mason

 

Pink Ribbon is an F/m book, which is outside of what I normally read. I occasionally enjoy a nice F/m book, Joey W. Hill writes a sexy male sub, for instance.  It's a nice change of pace for me, every once in a while.

Speaking of sexy, considering that the pink ribbon in the story is wrapped around a certain part of the male anatomy... let us just take a look at the cover photo a moment, with our imaginations running rampant.

With Pink Ribbon I find myself conflicted because I enjoyed the main character and the story, but the writing style didn't work for me. Double negatives that ended up saying the opposite of what I think the author intended, and more typos than should ever be in a short story were minor issues. My biggest problem with the writing is that we start near the end, and then the author looks back to what brought him here, which means 95% of the book is written as his memory. And unfortunately, I'm not sure the author knew what to do with the tense much of the time. It was usually written in past tense, but occasionally was written in present tense and the whole thing just kept yanking me out of the fantasy.

Here's the blurb:

Rick, and his lovely wife Cass, have a special relationship: loving, caring and she's the boss. During the day, he's an in control attorney, but come quitting time, he belongs to her, and as it turns out, to her friends as well. One night he spoils dinner and, while waiting for punishment, reflects on how he began his strange and exciting journey into submission. His memories, and the arrival of Cass' friend Sabine, make for an evening to remember.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: Yes. 2 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: 3 of 3.
• Sadism and Masochism: The kink here is primarily of control expressed through orgasm denial. 1 of 3 
• Extra Point: Yes

As for the writing elements -- the plot was just a telling of how the man ended up in a cage - so not really a plot. Pacing was fine. Prose had a lot of problems, and dialogue had minor issues. Character development was sufficient for us to understand why this man was submitting to his wife.

• Book Rating: Pink Ribbon: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 7 of 10
• Heat Level: 4 of 5

Again, the story was a good one, the kink was believable, and the mental aspects were explained fairly well. But the writing style in Pink Ribbon spoiled the story for me, personally.

Burn (A Hammer Novel) by Sean Michael

 

I have loved some of the books in Sean Michael's Hammer series... and then there have been some I haven't cared for as much.

Unfortunately, Burn fits into the latter category.

As the story opens we are introduced to two men who seem to have been friends for a while. Marshall comes to a bar for an annual get-together amongst friends after a really bad day at work (he's a firefighter) and Dave realizes Marshall is not in a good place at the moment, so he takes him home and pretty much offers sex as a way to get him out of his head.

The problem is that Dave is a Dom, and Marshal is not a submissive. In fact, at first it appears Marshall is a bit of a Top. So we have a Dom trying to slowly introduce the lifestyle to someone without actually explaining much of it to him, and without giving him a safeword. He does eventually give him a safeword, but in my opinion, too much happened without one.

Here's the blurb:

Marshall and Dave grew up in the same neighborhood. They’ve mostly lost touch as they've gotten older, getting together just once a year with a bunch of other old friends for a game of football. This year, firefighter Marshall is late, and when he does show up Dave can tell the man has not had a good day. When Dave suggests they leave the gang and go back to Marshall's place for some decompression time, Marshall jumps at the chance and, later, at Dave.

Things don't all go smoothly for the two men, though. Dave is into BDSM, a member of The Hammer Club, and he thinks he could use his skills to help Marshall relieve the stress and guilt the man carries over not being the perfect hero. Marshall thinks needing that kind of help is sick, though, and when he enjoys what Dave does to him, he's convinced there must be something wrong with him.

Can Dave figure out how to convince Marshall that kink is not sick at all, but a way to keep sane as well, or is their relationship doomed?

What we end up with is a close relationship where they occasionally play around with very light BDSM.  I had no problem with the day to day relationship, these men were great together. It just felt as if the way Dave introduced his kink to Marshall was a bit dishonest. I appreciate that the author didn't make everything work out perfectly in some of the middle parts of the book, because I can see all kinds of problems that can result from springing BDSM on your partner without warning them first. Or without giving them a safeword.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 1 of 3 - no discipline at all; one scene where someone is handcuffed to the bed
• Dominance and Submission: 1 of 3, sort of. When Marshall has a bad day he eventually submits just to see if it will help - but other than that he's pretty adamant about not submitting.
• Sadism and Masochism: 0 of 3 
• Extra Point: No

As for the writing elements -- the plot is the movement of the relationship, pacing had some issues, prose and dialogue were Sean Michael's trademark stilted sentence structure, and character development was fine with Marshall but not so much with Dave.

As for the stilted sentence structure... I enjoyed it at first, several dozen of Sean Michael's books ago. But when almost every character of Sean Michael's talks in the same manner... I don't know, I guess it's starting to not work for me anymore. Or maybe it's just that this story didn't work, and when I read one of his stories that I do like it will be okay again.

• Book Rating: Burn: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 2 of 10
• Heat Level: 2 of 5

More often than not I enjoy Sean Michael's books and stories... but Burn just didn't work for me. If you prefer BDSM lite then the story might work for you.

Review: My Two Doms by G.G. Royale

 

My Two Doms is the story of a woman who falls in love with two men. When they find out, she uses emotional blackmail to force them to like each other and get along with each other enough for her to "keep" both of them. The kicker here is that the men are Doms and the woman a submissive. Do you see the problem?

I don't know any Doms who would have gone along with this. I know some who may have been talked into it if approached in a different way... but none who would allow for the emotional blackmail approach.

I realize that when not in a scene they were all equals and Haley had every right to "fuss" at Gregory and Jason as she did (even if she came off whiny at times, another annoyance). However, most Doms, by definition, tend to have control issues. And they tend to balk when someone tries to control them, especially if they feel they are being put into a corner. 

Here's the blurb:

Haley has been seeing two very different doms, and they both made her happy in their own way. Gregory...older, calm, and willing to show her off. And Jason, a possessive and fiery younger man.

When the two men finally meet up, Haley realizes she doesn’t want each man on separate nights anymore; she wants both of them together! But the two doms are so different -- and so often at each other’s throat -- that she doubts she can have what she desires. Will a surprise weekend together help the men bond or just cause more conflict?

There were a lot of reasons the story didn't work for me. First off, I didn't really like Haley all that much. She seemed... shallow. She didn't know either man very well, so how could she have known she loved them so much? And to expect an environmentalist to get along with someone who works for an oil company? She should have known ahead of time that was a huge stumbling block, but didn't even realize it until the men started asking where the other worked.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: Bondage is creatively done and fairly well described. No real punishment scenes, just quick discipline, mostly. 2 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: Yes and no. Within the scenes she is mostly submissive, but still plotting even during a scene. 1 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: Yes, and it is well done and fairly accurately described. 2 of 3. 
• Extra Point: No

As for the writing elements, the plot didn't work for me, as I couldn't suspend belief enough. Pacing was fine, prose and dialogue were well done, character development was also fairly well done (even though I didn't like the main character very much).

• Book Rating: My Two Doms: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 5 of 10
• Heat Level: 3 of 5

I enjoyed the BDSM scenes within My Two Doms, and felt that the author did a fine job with the mechanics of writing. However, the characters and plot just didn't work for me.

As an explanation for the labels I've used, which may seem contradictory to the story explanations: There is no action between the two male Doms, they both focus exclusively on the female submissive. Also, while kitty and pony play are both talked about, there is no actual kitty or pony play, so I didn't label it as such.

Bound by Leather by Mychael Black and Shayne Carmichael

 

Bound by Leather is another short story, and once again I find myself disappointed in a book that begins a really good story and then just ends. The character building was going well, the possibilities in the relationship were beginning to come into focus, and there was reason to hope they might have their first real scene soon. And then it was over.

Here's the blurb:

In the world of werewolves, to harbor submissive desires is looked upon with disdain. To be gay and submissive is a double threat. To satisfy his craving, Nathaniel seeks acceptance at a BDSM club...and is quick to receive it.

Master Raphael's interest in the beautiful wolf is quite obvious to the club's clientele, and it isn't long before the two are paired for play. Yet, Raphael isn't known exactly for monogamy. Could Nathaniel turn him into a one-man, or one-wolf, Dominant?

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 0 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: This is a dom and a sub, but the story doesn't show us the actual act of submission. The the wish to submit. 1 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: None. 0 of 3 
• Extra Point: Yes

As for the writing elements, the set up for the plot was there, but the story ended before I felt there was a resolution. Pacing was okay. Prose and dialogue were fine. Character development was coming along nicely, and world building was okay.

I don't know how to rate this one. The writing was good, this is a talented writing team. But the story didn't feel finished. It just didn't feel like a good place to end things.

• Book Rating: Bound by Leather: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 2 of 10
• Heat Level: 1 of 5

I liked these characters, and would be interested in a story that tells us how these men work things out.  

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Corporate Needs by Bridget Midway

 

Corporate Needs is the third book in Bridget Midway's Corporate series.

We first met Princess in the first book in this series, Corporate Desires, and now we see her again, still as a Domme, but she's not enjoying it anymore. It's now just a drudge of a job.   

Here's the blurb:

Princess Watkins was damn good at her job as a Dominatrix at Suite Surrender, an exclusive BDSM B&B owned by her friends May and Winston Biggers. At least she thought she was before Winston decides to bring in his friend, Dominant Erik Hendrix, for consideration as his replacement as Dungeon Master over all of the Doms and Dommes working there. Erik Hendrix expected to be made Dungeon Master at Suite Surrender. What he didn't expect was to be competing for the spot. He also didn't expect that his competitor would be a very sexy Domme. Too bad he has a strict policy against dating another Domme. With her skills questioned, Princess wonders if maybe she should go "vanilla" and date the dull, new accountant. But with her strong pull to Erik, she's also starting to question her role as a Dominatrix.

I didn't enjoy the second book in this series, at all. Some of the same things caused problems in the third book - the pacing had issues, some of the submissives' needs seemed to be ridiculed, and there was the idea that an overweight submissive was somehow lesser. I appreciated that the submissive in this case stood up for himself, finally.

The plot was better in the third book, but most of the BDSM just didn't work for me. For instance: Being hit with a single tail hurts. Yes, it's possible to turn the hurt into pleasure, but it still hurts. It's sensation that can be transformed, so that it hurts and brings pleasure at the same time, but to say someone expected it to hurt but only felt pleasure... totally blew that entire scene for me.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline:  Some. 1 of 3.
• Dominance and Submission: Yes, but as in the second book, it's kind of a confusion of who is feeling what and when.  2 of 3.
• Sadism and Masochism: No, I don't believe I saw much sadism, and the biggest masochist was once again the person that was seen as an overweight submissive who didn't matter. He does stand up for himself, eventually, but I can't give points for S&M. 0 of 3
• Extra Point: No

As for the writing elements, the plot had promise but wasn't executed as well as it could have been. Pacing was much better in the third book then in the second, but still had a few issues. Prose and dialogue were fine. Character development was okay.

• Book Rating:: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 3 of 10
• Heat Level: 1 of 5

The romance did finally work for me towards the end of Corporate Needs. I don't believe we were given a strong idea of how the relationship will move forward, but we do have a decent idea that it will work out.

1. Corporate Desires  
2. Corporate Seduction
3. Corporate Needs

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Training to Pleasure by Julian Masters

 

Training to Pleasure had the potential to be a good story. Unfortunately, Mr. Masters was sorely in need of an editor. There are way too many punctuation marks! And lots of other odd punctuation that made reading and staying with the story a challenge. Also, compound words were seperated - so anyone was any one. That may sound like nitpicking, but it happened many dozens of times, making me stop and look at it, read through it again, and then realize how it should have been written. And there were other editing snafus, where it appears he reworded part of a sentence and didn't go back and fix the other part of the sentence to fit with the reworded portion. I could continue on with my problems with the  writing, but I'll stop there and get to the story.

The story is one of a woman brand new to the ideas of BDSM who finds an experienced Master online, and then follows as they begin a relationship. It's a cyber relationship for a few months, and then they meet and it becomes a real life relationship. The first part of the book had some pretty big pacing issues, as the action was pretty slow to get started.

Some parts of the story didn't work so great for me, but others did. Or, I should say, they really did. There is a scene where he gives her a taste of something she doesn't want to experience anymore of, and then tells her that he wants her to resist him. If she manages to keep him from taking her for thirty minutes then she won't get more of the bad thing. If she can't last the entire thirty minutes then the longer she lasts, the less she will have to endure of the bad thing. That turned into a very nice scene.

I also appreciated that we are shown two strong individuals coming together in a power exchange relationship. No one is broken, no one needs to be "fixed". One has a kink to Dominate, the other has a kink to submit. That's it, nothing is broken.  The training also has some Zen type stuff, some of which was a nice touch.

Here's the blurb:

Kate is hard working, successful, responsible and smart-yet something is missing from her life. The men she dates quickly bore her in and out of bed. A girlfriend loans Kate an erotic novel of dominance and submission that ignites a firestorm of longing and desire she cannot ignore. Perhaps she has been looking for the wrong type of man in all the wrong places her whole life?

Kate goes in search online, learning all she can about her need to surrender her heart and body to a truly masterful man. A chance encounter in a chat room leads to her eventually meeting James at a beautiful English country house and spending an exquisitely erotic week together that will change both their lives forever.Note: This story was previously released in 2003 under author name Sir Julian. It has been revised and extensively expanded.

Training to Pleasure was a nice story of a couple's journey towards a Master/submissive relationship. There is a little bit of well done puppy play, and a nice description of a colonic (kind of one step beyond an enema) that is also well described. Impact play is not a huge part of the training, but that's okay because the things done in place of impact play are quite creative and (other than a few instances) fairly well described. 

The poor grammar and lack of editing was a real problem for me, though.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: Yes, but nothing too extreme. 2 of 3.
• Dominance and Submission: Yes. 3 of 3.
• Sadism and Masochism: Yes. 2 of 3
• Extra Point: Yes.

As for the writing elements, the plot was the story of how the relationship progressed during their cyber chats, their first date, and then a week in a rented country home in the middle of nowhere. There were no outside influences, which was fine for this story. Pacing had some issues, there was the aforementioned slow start, but there were also too many info dumps and over-describing of mundane things that were not a big part of the story (another place a good editor could have come in handy). Prose had serious issues, dialogue flowed in most places but had issues here and there. Character development was fine.

• Book Rating:Training to Pleasure: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 8 of 10
• Heat Level: 5 of 5

  
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Summer School: A Ponygirl Novel by Jurgen von Stuka

 

Summer School is a non-consensual tale of girls being forced into pony play. Actually, the term "pony play" isn't quite right here, because this is quite serious, with no playing around. The girls are eventually made into something as close to ponies as a human body can be taken. (Probably a lot farther than you're thinking.) There are also human cows and human piggies, once you get into the story.

Some non-BDSM parts of the story bothered me:

• The author tried to show that this could be an economic venture, and tried to explain how the "missing" girls could be explained. I agree you could possibly explain some missing girls in this manner, but once there are dozens of girls who go away to school and then never go home again... for families with fifteen thousand dollars to blow on summer camp, they are going to be able to hire private detectives and lawyers, too.
• The description of some of the gadgets was too much for me. A description of a complicated mouth gag took pages and pages to describe the gag and then to show how it was installed. Some of the gadgets were well thought out and ingenious, but there were times that the story stopped too long for the descriptions.
• The author lost track of the kind of bondage her victims were in a few times. Someone in a full hood that blocked sound was able to hear her tormentor speak, but then a few paragraphs later could not hear other sounds that would have been louder than a voice.

 Here's the blurb:

Desperately wanting to get away from home for the summer, Dori Hammond, talks her father into sending her to a summer riding school. However, she quickly learns that this is not a traditional riding school, and its unusual training methods are cause for alarm. However, having signed the required contract, she and the other students are obliged to submit to a rigorous training regimen. Unbeknownst to them, they’ll be methodically transformed into human ponies. Headmistress Wright and Headmaster Boswick employ mechanical horses, strict restraint, suspensions, impalement, and the resources of the farm's deepest cellars. Their female students quickly learn what a horse's life is really like and that misconduct will lead to severe punishment. Riding, as the girls discover, is more than taking a pony around the ring. As Head Master Boswick says, "You can't learn to ride until you've been ridden."

Though the girls may resist the humiliating treatment, they often experience an overwhelming sexual satisfaction in the pleasure and pain they are forced to suffer.

Not all the students are at the school voluntarily. Many are spoiled and unruly young women sent there by their wealthy parents. One unlucky German girl, Lucy, is kidnapped on an overnight train and sent to the school, the abduction arranged for by her Dutch boyfriend.

Dori and her fellow students are subjected to discipline and training from both the male and female staff. For those who resist, there is the dairy barn where the girls are turned into human cows. And for those incorrigible young females who fail in equine training and in the dairy barn, there is the lowly squalor of the Hog Farm, where they are good for nothing but sexual sport. For Dori and the others, it becomes clear long before the end of the story that their lives will be transformed forever, in ways they never imagined.

In addition to details scenes of human pony training, the inventive story includes graphic descriptions of elaborate pony costumes, unique extreme bondage and suspension, gags, cuffs, collars, chains, dildos, steel restraints, elaborate bondage devices, electrical stimulation, milking, piercing, surgical body modification and straight and lesbian sex. Strong BDSM content.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: Yes. Both taken to the extreme. Some of the bondage could easily be fatal if done as described with no one left to observe. This is fantasy BDSM, complete with floggers that tear bits of skin off and send it flying through the air. 3 of 3.
• Dominance and Submission: Again, taken to the extreme, and the submission is not consensual. 3 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: There are certainly sadists who run the school. And some of the girls seem to be trained into masochism.  3 of 3.
• Extra Point: The story is based around a sadistic pony girl school, it's safe to say it gets the extra point.

Obviously, the Intensity Level is a  10 of 10, but I'm not sure what to do with the Heat Level. The first part of the book was a 5 of 5, but the latter part went over the top to the extent that it wasn't hot anymore. More scary than hot. And, with the believability and continuity issues I talked about above, that also interfered with the heat level a bit. I think giving it a 3 of 5 is about right, with the understanding that there are parts of it that do hit the 5 of 5, especially if you're into the whole pony thing.

• Book Rating: Summer School: 6 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 10 of 10
• Heat Level: 3 of 5

As for the writing elements: There isn't really a plot. The book is a description of what happens to a number of people who end up at this school. One person is followed more closely than the others, and we see how far she is taken into being a pony instead of a human.  But it's the physical aspects we see, not really the psychological aspects.

Pacing has some issues. Prose and dialogue were well done. There wasn't very much character building, just descriptions of what was happening to the various characters.

As I said, prose and dialogue were well done, and the voice was easy to follow. If you enjoy pony girl activities, and if the non-consent stuff isn't a turn off for you, then you'll probably enjoy Summer School.   
 

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Claudia's Surrender by S J Lewis

 
The full title of this books is Claudia's Surrender: The case of the reluctant submissive.It was enough to get my attention, as the title and description sound like there is D/s involved.

Unfortunately, the D/s dynamic isn't what I thought it would be, based on the title and blurb. If anything, Claudia is the one giving orders, as she turns around and demands that Sam bind her hands and use her hard. She's the one giving the orders, not him. And often, once he gets her bound she fights him and he must avoid her (very real) kicks and other attempts to keep from being "taken". She is not reluctant, and she does not surrender.

True, once she orders him to "tie her up and use her hard", he does a really good job of it. There is some intense bondage and some really hot sex. But it is not what I expected. Here is the blurb:

Two years before, the lovely redhead Claudia enjoyed a wild vacation of kinky and submissive sex, surrendering body and soul to the dominant Sam. Now Sam Pender is back in Claudia’s life and he expects the same kind of sexual surrender he enjoyed with her before. Once she’d bound, gagged and forced to submit, she can stop being P. I. Claudia Cole, respected businesswoman, and turn into the lusty, horny, kinky submissive ‘Red’. All it takes is her surrender. But submitting doesn’t come easy for Claudia; she questions herself at every turn. When Sam is abruptly called away on business and suddenly requires her assistance as a professional P. I., Claudia answers his call, and finds not only a twisted mystery to solve, but some answers to her own sexual dilemma. From author of the best-selling Female Prey.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: Lots of bondage, no real discipline.There is some spanking and face slapping, but it's part of the kidnap role play they do, not a D/s type of spanking.
• Dominance and Submission: Sam is not a Dom, and Claudia is not submissive. They have kinky sex that recreates kidnap scenarios, but they aren't in a power exchange relationship.
• Sadism and Masochism: I can see a bit of a Sadist in Sam, and a bit of a masochist in Claudia. But that isn't really the dynamic. Mostly, I think Claudia likes the bondage for the sake of being bound, rather than for the sake of the pain. At least once she needs the pain, when she demands he use duct tape even though she knows it will hurt. But for the most part, I think it's the act of being bound and helpless that does it for her.

This is one of those your-kink-is-not-my-kink things, which is normally okay, except that the title and the blurb seemed to specifically say the book is about something that it is not. Claudia is not reluctant, and she does not submit. True, she turns around and gives Sam her hands, surrendering her freedom, but she then tells him exactly what to do, and pretty much demands he does it.

As for the writing elements, the plot is actually a very good plot. Claudia is a private investigator and the non-kink parts of the plot were pretty interesting. The pacing was... okay, not great but not terrible. Prose was good but dialogue needed some help. They say each other's name almost every time they talk to each other - real people don't do that. Character development was good.

If the idea of being roughly bound with a whole lot of really hard sex from someone you really care about turns you on, then this book is for you. If you need the D/s aspects to be involved though, then Claudia's Surrender may not do much for you.  I'm going to give Claudia's Surrender a 6 of 10 for a misleading title and for the dialogue issues.

Book Rating: Claudia's Surrender: 6 of 10
Heat Level: 3 of 5