Cereus: Building by Sean Michael, BA Tortuga, Julia Talbot

 

It's no secret that I enjoy a good urban fantasy, and Cereus: Building is full of interesting creatures, and interesting combinations of those creatures.

What happens when a besieged and rather small dragon comes to a vampire and says, “I need your help.” Or when that vampire comes to a werewolf and says, “I have a job for you.” The vampire goes and builds a resort for things that go bump in the night, of course. Riding the wave of Julia Talbot’s Bloodrose series, the multi-author Cereus: Building features paranormal romance from three of Torquere Press’ most-loved authors. The stories move from vampire Jonny’s city club to a new luxury getaway in the woods of the Pacific Northwest, where pleasure and pain are the name of the game.

Julia Talbot’s It’s Elemental features construction contractor Chayton, a werewolf who thinks demon decorator Kenny is a little fussy, and a lot hot. They argue about everything from feng shui to sex. Will they be able to resolve their differences? The Third Course, by BA Tortuga tells the story of Marco and Stephan, werecats, brothers, and chefs who meet their match in head-bartender Faelan, who just happens to be a growly, sexy Top. Finally, Sean Michael’s Smoke and Gold follows the head dominant of the club, Zee, who’s dealing with trying to get his playrooms just so, and trying to figure out maddening dragon Daniel at the same time. Who can resist loving a dragon?

I believe Sean Michael is going for a similar set-up with Cereus as he had with the Velvet Glove series -- the difference being that this is an Urban Fantasy where The Velvet Glove was a Futuristic Fantasy. I loved many of the stories from The Velvet Glove, and I'll be interested in seeing where he takes things with the new Cereus series.


BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 1 of 3.
• Dominance and Submission: 2 of 3.
• Sadism and Masochism: 1 of 3 .

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

• Book Rating: Cereus: Building: 7 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 4 of 10
• Heat Level: 3 of 5

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

Sold, A Hammer Novel by Sean Michael.

 
I've been reading so many short stories lately in the erotica genre, it was really good to sink my teeth into a longer BDSM flavored book.

Sold is more psychology and feelings than it is physical scenes, but that's okay. Even though the main couple don't have many really intense scenes, there are other scenes that are talked about that give the story that kind of intensity.

Here's the blurb:

Matt is new in town, and he’s excited to be vying for a membership at the Hammer, a club he’s heard is the best in the business. He has to admit that his first encounter with a sub at the Hammer makes him believe it. Adam is like no one Matt has ever met, and he wants the professional sub to be his and his alone.

Adam has some issues that might throw a monkey wrench into Matt’s plan. While Adam thinks Matt is the most amazing top he’s ever met, he also has to make a living. He’s never wanted to have a private contract with anyone before, and he’s not sure how to be a sub to Matt without making the man jealous because of his job.

Matt thinks he has the answers to all of Adam’s questions, but they have to work it all out between them gradually. Meanwhile, Adam still has to work, and some of his old clients may not like Adam having a relationship with another Dom. Can Matt and Adam find a balance between work and play?

We see the trust element going both ways here, both the sub trusting the Dom and the Dom trusting the sub. The story also shows us the difference in a service submissive focused on servicing and pleasing and in a submissive who gives up all control. Not that one is right and the other wrong, just that there is a difference and it is pretty apparent here. For this couple it works for the submissive to give up all control. For other couples the service submissive who anticipates the Master's needs and provides for them is the right kink.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 1 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: 2 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: 2 of 3 
• Extra Point: Yes

The power exchange is shown very well. The physical aspects aren't used to cement the mental stuff with this couple, and that's okay. It works for them, and it's a very sweet story.

• Book Rating: Sold: 8 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 6 of 10
• Heat Level: 4 of 5

 

Christmas Angel (a Hammer story) by Sean Michael

 

Christmas Angel is a touching story of healing and acceptance. But then, I think most of the books and shorts in Sean Michael's Hammer Series can be described that way. Some have more kink than others, and this is one of the more vanilla of the series. Not that it's vanilla, 'cause it's not. Just that it's more vanilla. There will be kink in the relationship, it just doesn't happen right off the bat.

Here's the blurb:

It’s Christmas Charity Auction time again at the Hammer Club, and this year Oliver has convinced Kein to put a couple of hours of time up for bid. Kein, confidence shattered by his Dom leaving him, is worried that no one will want him, even just for a couple hours of service.

Mac is attending the auction for the first time, and he’s drawn to Kein as soon as the beautiful sub walks onto the stage. His is the winning bid, and he and Kein retire to one of the back rooms to have dinner and get to know each other better.

Will sparks fly between them? Could Mac and Kein be each other’s Christmas angels?

All in all, it was a pretty satisfying little Christmas story. I could have used more kink, but the story just didn't call for it. Yet.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: One scene with some bondage, no discipline needed at this point in the relationship. 1 of 3.
• Dominance and Submission: Yes. 2 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: No. 
• Extra Point: No

As for the writing elements: the plot was a good one, even if I do tire of subs who must be "fixed". Pacing was fine. Prose and dialogue were fine. Character development was very well done for such a short story.

• Book Rating: Christmas Angel: 9 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 3 of 10
• Heat Level: 2 of 5

Three Wishes by Sean Michael

 

Three Wishes looks to me to be the beginning of a new series, and if the next book is as good as this one? I'm sold.

The three fantasies here are:

1. A man who wants to be forced to accept body mods - tattoos and piercings. He's stipulated a few guidelines, but for the most part he doesn't want to be able to chicken out, so he wants to be forced into it. I loved this fantasy. Great Master, perfect level of D/s... it just flat out worked for me. And I'm not a huge body mod fan.
2. A couple who are looking for more edge play, so they've come to the island where they've requested experts be brought in for cutting, flogging, breath play, etc. One thing each day, the first day is the sub's fantasy, the next day is the dom's fantasy, then the sub's again, the dom's again, and then something that is for both of them. Everything is done to the sub while the Dom sits in a comfy chair and watches. I liked where the author was taking this, but felt that it was cut short and we missed seeing more than half of the fantasy. I loved the ideas, and was disappointed that we didn't get to see more.
3. And finally, someone with a medical fantasy who wants to be forced to submit to enemas, speculums, etc. This one had a twist that worked out great, and I enjoyed this fantasy as well.

There is also some drama going on with the three people who own the island, but I'm not going to say much about that. Well, except that I'm looking forward to the next book.

I think I've told you pretty much what the blurb says, but just to be thorough, here's the blurb:

James, Guard, and Damien run an island where your fantasy, no matter how kinky, how perverse, will come true for you. It's a lot of work, but they're dedicated to making it work for their clients. If only they could make their own three-way relationship run as smoothly.

In Three Wishes, the men bring in three different couples for their special services. Handsome model Benji is tired of being perfect, and he wants to make his body his own. Thor, tattoo artist and piercer, as well as Dom, is just the man to do it. Will Benji find what he's looking for?

Meanwhile, Alan and Roman are a long-time sub/Dom couple looking to have a few outside Masters give Alan all the things that Roman can’t. Will their relationship survive Alan's strong reaction to one of the Masters?

The last couple to visit the island are Quinn and Pierce. Quinn has a medical fetishes he’s embarrassed to tell his lover Pierce about even though Pierce is a doctor. So he’s going to get it out of his system in this safe environment. At least that’s the plan...

Don't miss out on these fantasies come true.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 2 of 3.  Nothing too drastic here. Light punishment and some decent bondage when necessary, but neither of of these elements is really the focus.
• Dominance and Submission: 3 of 3. Yum.
• Sadism and Masochism:  3 of 3 - though we don't get a blow-by-blow of each thing done, there is a good bit of edge play. And we get Doms who aren't afraid of taking a sub right to the limit of what they are capable of handling.
• Extra Point: Yes.

As for the writing elements: I enjoyed all of the plots, which are really just the three fantasies. The pacing was great. Prose and dialogue were fine. Character development wasn't terribly in-depth but it was okay as we were given enough so we understood what made each person crave their particular fantasy.

• Book Rating: Three Wishes: 9 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 9 of 10
• Heat Level: 5 of 5

I thoroughly enjoyed Three Wishes -- the story idea is a great way to bring in special fantasies and edge play... things that aren't done on a daily basis but that can be done in a safe environment with people who know what they are doing. I'm also intrigued by the drama going on with the island's owners, and while I probably have a good idea of how that's going to end up in the long run, I think I'm going to enjoy seeing it play out.

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.

Velvet Dragon by Sean Michael

 

Velvet Dragon is a new book in the Velvet Glove series by Sean Michael. I've really enjoyed this series, as it has shown different couples with very different ideas of what BDSM means to them. Some stories are more physical, others are more mental. Velvet Dragon falls more on the mental end of the scale.

Here's the blurb:

Serius is an expert in whipping; his beauty is a riding crop, but he's an expert with all manner of whips, floggers and paddles. He's also a man looking for someone special to be his sub; he believes in order, discipline, submission, but he also wants a challenge. When Hercules promises him the perfect sub in exchange for his working at the exclusive Velvet Glove, Serius believes it's possible he just might find the man he's looking for.

Dragonne has the appearance of the perfect sub, but the truth is he's never truly submitted. He's never been pushed past his boundaries, never had to use his safeword, never been broken. He has built a wall of control around his core, and wonders if anyone can breach it. Can these two men find what they're looking for in each other?

I'm not sure the blurb really tells us much about this particular story. Yes, Serius is good with whips and the riding crop, and he does use these items on Dragonne to an extent that most submissives would not be able to handle. But the extreme stuff is mostly glossed over. The true "breaking point" with Dragonne is mental, not physical. He's been trained to control everything - feelings, emotions, level of pain, etc. He thinks he is submitting, but when he's told he's not, he has no clue how to do more than he is. What he doesn't understand is that he is submitting his control to them, and Doms don't want his control, they want to make him lose his control.

Serius figures this out, so we see a lot of non-BDSM activities... like eating and drinking from each others mouths. Yes, it's written very sensually, but it lasted too long for me. But I suppose it had to last that long, because it's the feeding, drinking, kissing, talking, and cuddling that work to break through Dragonne's control, not so much the intense BDSM play. 

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline:  0 of 3.
• Dominance and Submission:  2 of 3.
• Sadism and Masochism: Yes, though it's not the focus of the story. 2 of 3. 
• Extra Point: Yes

As for the writing elements -- the plot was the story of the relationship, and this was a different path to a BDSM relationship than I believe I've seen written before, so points for creativity. Pacing had some issues. Prose and dialogue were fine. Character development was well done. World-building was consistent with previous stories in this series.

• Book Rating:Velvet Dragon: 7 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 5 of 10
• Heat Level: 3 of 5

Velvet Dragon was not one of my favorite stories in this series, but I appreciate that Sean Micheal continues to show us the various ways that people can incorporate BDSM into their lives.

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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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