Toy Box: Pine Switches by Mav Anthony, Lee Benoit and Jay Lygon

 
Toy Box: Pine Switches consists of three stories:

• The Scent of Pine by Mav Anthony
• Hamadryad Essence by Jay Lygon
• Tripod by Lee Benoit

The Scent of Pine takes us back to another time, where clothes are formal, overcoats are a necessity, and there are fireplaces in the bedroom for heat. Pine switches across a bare bottom can also generate some heat, apparently. Halfway through the story I was enjoying it, but the ending wasn't terribly satisfying for me.

I usually adore the writing of Jay Lygon, but Hamadryad Essence appears to be the exception to the rule. It was a good concept, a nice plot, and what could be a fun world to play around in. It just didn't come together for me.

The final story is Tripod, and Lee Benoit came through in shining colors. The characters, the world, and situation, and the sensory information we get... Wow. The blurb explains better than I can what it's about, so I'll put the blurb in for all three while I'm at it.

The pine switch is an old fashioned tool that acts much like a flogger. The men in the three stories in this Toy Box use them to maximum effect! In The Scent of Pine by Mav Anthony, Aaron has been watching his lover Aime at a fine party all evening, hiding and feeling like he doesn't belong. When everyone goes home, Aime proves that Aaron belongs at his side more than anyone.

Jay Lygon brings us Hamadryad Essence. Young agent Hayden Fischer of the Bureau of Alchemy wants to impress his boss, the very macho, handsome Captain Bryer, but when he does get Bryer's notice, it's for screwing up. Bryer believes that discipline is the best cure for a wild young agent who won't obey him. 

And finally, in Tripod by Lee Benoit, a temple whore, a horny slave, and a dungeon's master priest prepare to punish the whore for misbehavior. As the whore faces his ordeal, he must bend or break, like the priest's switches. Whore, slave, priest -- when none prevails, can all three stand strong?

I have trouble rating anthologies. If I were rating the three stories then the first two would get pretty low ratings, and Tripod would get a 9 of 10. So how do I rate the anthology? I think the answer is that I don't try to give it a number rating.

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Toy Box: Public Places

 

I wanted this anthology because of the piece by Jay Lygon. I loved Chaos Magic, Love Runes, and Personal Demons, so when I found out there was a short with Hector and Sam in Toy Box Public Places, I was all over it. Even though sex in public is not one of my things. I take the whole consensual thing pretty seriously, and if someone hasn't consented to watching something, then that's a problem for me.

Luckily, that was not a problem in Public Places. Nothing happens in front of people who haven't consented to watch.

The Touch of Nostalgia by Heidi Champa is the first story, where two people meet and head to a back room to have some hot stranger sex. It's not BDSM, but it's just rough enough to not be totally vanilla, either.

Poke on the Water by G. R. Richards ends up with a threesome. This story did the least for me of the three in the anthology, though I'm sure there are others who will say it was their favorite of the three.

And finally, Brat by Jay Lygon has Sam and Hector together after a long absence while Sam has been busy with his various jobs. Hector is taking Sam out of town for some marathon sex, but Sam's head isn't in the right place and he's being a bit of a brat. Never fear though, Hector knows just what Sam needs. I did appreciate that Hector checked in with Sam once though, in the past Hector has had a bit of a temper, and it was nice to see him totally in control in this short.

I'm not really sure how to go about rating the anthology as a whole. Only one of the three stories is BDSM, and while that one had a nice scene in it, it doesn't feel right to rate the whole book based on one story. And if you've read the other books in the Chaos Magic series then you pretty much already know what kind of scene it was without my having to spell it out for you.

It was a nice little short read, and I'm glad to have been able to check in with Hector and Sam again.

Memorable BDSM Books

 
Just starting out with a new BDSM book review blog, I've been debating about how to play catch-up. I'm reviewing books as I read them, but what about the books I've read in the past? The ones I want everyone to know about, and the ones I want to rave about. The books and stories and series I want to share, to make sure others find them, too.

I don't think I can do a good review of them without re-reading so they are fresh in my head. So what to do? How about I just make a list of the books I've read in the past that stick out in my mind?

First there are the classics, like:

• Story of O by Pauline Reage
• The Beauty Series (The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty, Beauty's Punishment, and Beauty's Release) by Anne Rice writing as A.N. Roquelaure
• The two Molly Weatherfield books (Carrie's Story and Safe Word)
• Mr. Benson by John Preston

Then there are some nice Urban Fantasy type books, like

• Chaos Magic series by Jay Lygon (Chaos Magic, Love Runes, and Personal Demons)
• Soul Mates series by Jourdan Lane, even though this one is more Urban Fantasy than BDSM, it's still got a lot of elements of BDSM. 
• I also always seem to remember Calendar Boys - October: Trick Of Silver and On The Ragged Edge Of The World, a little duology by Jamie Craig that nicely integrates Urban Fantasy with D/s. I'm not sure why it sticks in my mind, as I don't remember it having anything memorable as far as BDSM went, perhaps it was the depth of characters.
• One that's kind of hard to find now is Obedience Training by Mya -- an incredible BDSM story and it just happens to also be a wonderful Urban Fantasy story, with a few new critters creatively thrown into the mix. I wish she would write a follow up story, I loved the characters and want more of them.

There are also the other-planet type series, like:

• The Velvet Glove series by Sean Micheal
• Morgan Hawke's Interstellar Service & Discipline series (Victorious Star and Fallen Star) - both of which are incredibly hot. Humanoid life forms from another planet who have two penises.... need I say more?
• What Worse Place Can I Beg In Your Love? by Syd McGinley

A few that are very realistic, like:

• The Deviations series (1. Deviations: Submission, 2. Deviations: Domination, 3. Deviations: Discipline, and 4. Deviations: Bondage) by Chris Owen and Jodi Payne. A fifth book is in the works, entitled Safe Words, but no word of a release date yet.
• We mustn't forget the Nature of Desire series by Joey W. Hill (Natural Law, Ice Queen, Mirror of My Soul, and what could be the most touching BDSM romance story I've ever read: Rough Canvas)
• The Hammer series also probably fits here, but the entire series as a whole isn't as well put together as some of the others. 

The books in the above category are all a part of a series, I'm sure there are plenty of single titled realistic BDSM books that should be listed, but the series books are the ones that tend to stick out in my head.


Sometimes I'm up for a good capture/kidnap type book. Both of these books are by Claire Thompson. They are not for everyone - they are both rough, and should be kept in the realm of fantasy. There is no safe, sane, or consensual in these books.

• Frog: A Tale of Sexual Torture and Degradation 
• The Toy 

Others are harder to explain but they've stuck with me, like:

• Butterfly Unpinned by Laura Bacchi and Bonnie Dee 
• Dark Angel Sounding by Habu - this one is pretty short, IIRC, perhaps I will read this one again so I can properly review it.
• Possibly even the Dr. Fell series by Syd McGinley. Perhaps it should go into the realistic section, but for some reason I have a hard time putting it there. 

I would probably not have given every book listed here a 10 of 10, but I'm listing them because the stories have stuck with me over time. Of the books and series listed, my favorite is probably the Deviations series, followed by all of the classics I listed in the first section, then the Joey W. Hill books I listed (you'll note I didn't list the whole Nature of Desire series), then Morgan Hawke's Interstellar Service & Discipline series, Syd McGinley's What Worse Place Can I Beg In Your Love?, and Obedience Training by Mya. Next would come Butterfly Unpinned by Laura Bacchi and Bonnie Dee, and Dark Angel Sounding by Habu.  Dark Angel Sounding is very dark, but the tone of the book, the way it's told... it's stuck with me over time and I've read it a few times.

There is actually another very dark book that has stuck with me (and is another that is hard to find): Keep You by Cindy Rosenthal. It's a story of two boys (young men, but mentally they are boys in many ways, though men in others) who got lost somehow, boys on the outside of society who sell their bodies to survive, who join together and survive as best they can. It's another of those stories that I didn't enjoy all that much while reading it, but I couldn't put it down, and it's stuck with me, even years after I read it. And it's the best explanation I've read of that itch you get when you just need a good flogging, and then how it feels to finally get the itch scratched flogged.

I've realized that I have a whole lot of M/m books listed. I actually prefer M/f scenarios, but as it turns out, a lot of the M/m stuff delves deeper into the BDSM psyche. Is it because you can skip the gender issues of Man as Dom and woman as sub when it's M/m? Or is it just that men can be rougher with each other? Whatever the reason, oftentimes the M/f stuff is more BDSM Lite, while the M/m stuff jumps right in without apologizing. That is not always the case, I can quote lots of books where it isn't... but most of the time it seems the M/m BDSM doesn't feel the need to tread as delicately as so much of the M/f stuff. And, as it turns out, BDSM isn't about gender, it's about people exchanging power... and about sex and love and trust. It goes beyond gender.

I think that my first M/m book was Rough Canvas by Joey W. Hill. It is still, in my mind, one of the best BDSM love stories, ever. Not just the best M/m BDSM love story, but the best BDSM love story no matter the gender make up. It's a seriously good book.

The Deviations series delves quite deeply into a BDSM relationship without the romance. That's not to say there aren't feelings there, it's just not terribly romantic. I love the way the relationships progress, even though for a while some of it makes me uncomfortable. Not the BDSM, I don't think any of the BDSM made me uncomfortable... it was the feelings involved, the emotions. I also love that the submissive is clear on the difference between a Dom and a bully and the difference in Dominance and abuse. And it shows that Doms sometimes make mistakes, and it's the submissive's responsibility to safeword when that happens. It has some rough points, but it is very realistic and beautifully written. I can't wait for the fifth book, and will probably re-read the first four books before jumping into the fifth.

Some of the books I've mentioned here I have reviewed on my Book Series Review blog. I've linked below to the books I've reviewed over there:

• On The Ragged Edge Of The World by Jamie Craig
• Soul Mates series by Jourdan Lane
• Chaos Magic series by Jay Lygon
• Butterfly Unpinned by Laura Bacchi and Bonnie Dee
• Deviations Series by Chris Owen and Jodi Payne
• Nature of Desire Series by Joey W. Hill

This is not, by any means, a comprehensive list of the BDSM books and series that I've enjoyed. It's just a list of what immediately came to mind.


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