Walking Spencer by Chris Owen

 
At twelve pages long, this is an ultra short story. But it's a pretty good one. It's all about the thought processes behind the first time one is given an idea (such as being walked on a leash), carrying through to it happening for the first time, and then being told how much farther it can be taken. Such a simple concept, and it's perfect for a short story.

Here's the blurb:

When the next door neighbors ask Dean to walk their dog while they're away Dean is happy to help out. Spencer is equally happy when Dean's playful game with a dog leash leads to something far more intense than Spencer had bargained for.

I had just a bit of trouble with the head hopping on this one, so I had to backtrack to figure out who was thinking what. Not a huge problem, but something I don't expect from this author.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 0 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: 2 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: 1 of 3

As for the writing elements, no real plot but it's so short the story is fine that way, pacing was fine, prose and dialogue were fine, character development is okay for such a short story.

• Book Rating: Walking Spencer: 8 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 2 of 10
• Heat Level: 3 of 5

Ermine & Bougainvillea by I.D. Locke

 

Ermine & Bougainvillea is a nice little short that is most memorable for the world building.

I've never thought dryads were exceptionally cool before... but now I do. The level of worldbuilding in this relatively short story was top notch.

Here's the blurb:

Wynn is an ermine shifter running for his life from homophobic coyote shifters who took exception to a gay shifter in their territory. He makes it to the safety of a dense tangle of bougainvillea vines where the coyotes can’t follow and falls into exhausted sleep. When he wakes, he discovers that the bougainvillea is actually home to a half-dryad named Etireh who pushes all of Wynn’s arousal buttons without even trying.

Etireh turns out to enjoy some of the same things that Wynn does, namely, Otherworldly gay men with a thing for kink and BDSM who would take pleasure in games of domination and submission. In Wynn, Etireh finds a partner who enjoys being submissive to his dominant and is more than willing to push boundaries and play in ways Etireh barely dared to dream about.

A few things fell flat for me. The introduction of Etireh's mother didn't make much sense. If we'd seen her again later in the story, so she could approve (or not) of Wynn then it would have been different.

And how is Etireh's name pronounced? Authors, if you're going to name your characters something exotic, give us a clue as to pronunciation. Please.

I'm still trying to figure out what didn't work for me with the sex. All of the elements were there... creativity, power exchange, a good balance of pain, some bondage. But it didn't especially work for me. I have no idea why it didn't.

BDSM elements:

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

As for the writing elements:

• The plot was just the story of meeting and then a first sex scene
• Pacing had issues, which is a real problem in a short story
• Prose and dialogue were fine
• Character development was okay, not great, but it was a short story
• World-building was really well done 

I'm going to give Ermine & Bougainvillea a 7 of 10. It was a good story with good characters and great worldbuilding, but it didn't really work for me and I'm having a hard time putting my finger on why it didn't.

• Book Rating: Ermine & Bougainvillea: 7 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 6 of 10
• Heat Level: 2 of 5

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Where he Belongs by DC Juris

 
Where He Belongs is short. At not quite five thousand words, I'd say it falls under the extremely short heading.

Here's the blurb:

Vance and Raine had the perfect little life, until their shared sassy sub, Andrew, threw a hissy fit and left them. But the big, wide world turned out to be far too lonely, and Andrew is back, wanting to come home. Vance is willing -- he knows he'll always do anything he must to keep Andrew -- but Raine isn't. Raine's heart still hasn't mended, and he's going to need some convincing before he lets Andrew back in. Fortunately for Andrew, Vance has a plan.

For such a short story, we learn a surprising amount about what happened before, so we know why these three characters are where they are in this brief moment in time we are shown. There is one surprise twist thrown in, and just enough of a scene to get us interested. It's a nice short story.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: 1 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: This story is primarily about a relationship that has broken up, and whether it's possible for it to get back together. There is some D/s, enough so we know that in a functioning relationship it would be front and center... but what we see is mostly just people talking. 1 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: 0 of 3 
• Extra Point: 0 of 3

As for the writing elements: the plot is simple enough for such a short story and there is even an unexpected twist thrown in, prose and dialogue are both fine, character development gives us more than one would think in such a short story. 

I'm giving Where He Belongs an 8 of 10 for several reasons. One being that I think it was too short. Even just another thousand or two thousand words could have shown us enough to have knocked the enjoyment factor so much higher.  It's a perfectly good plot with perfectly good characters and I want to see more than the 30 or 45 minutes of their lives that we got to see.

• Book Rating: Where He Belongs: 8 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 2 of 10
• Heat Level: 3 of 5

I loved Finding Sanctuary by DC Juris, if you haven't read this author before I would recommend Finding Sactuary over Where he Belongs.

 

Caressa’s Knees by Annabel Joseph

 

The first post on this blog is a review of Comfort Object, by Annabel Joseph. I had been thinking of starting a BDSM review blog, and Comfort Object moved me enough to make me finally create it.

Caressa's Knees is the sequel to Comfort Object, and it moved me just as much. The BDSM is no where near as intense, but the emotions and the care and... well, just watching Kyle act and react and decide what to do when he's the one making the decisions. Beautiful.

At first, when I read the blurb, I felt a little sad for Kyle. For him to once again be the support person, the one organizing things and taking care of a famous Diva type personality. I thought I wanted more for him. But you know what? Kyle is a fixer, an organizer. It's what he does. It makes him happy. Caressa is perfect for him.

I was also a little worried that this was going to be one of those cases where the person is "broken" in some way, and the Dom comes along and magically fixes them with BDSM. That's not what happens here. True, Caressa has issues, but she works through them. Kyle doesn't fix her. He spotlights her issues to help her understand what they are... but she fixes them. She stands on her own two feet.

Here's the blurb:

Working for megastar Jeremy Gray has taken an emotional toll on personal assistant Kyle Winchell. In the name of self-preservation, he re-locates to New York City to work at Ironclad Solutions, a service agency catering to the needs of the rich and famous.

He accepts a job as personal assistant to well-respected concert cellist Caressa Gallo, only to find she's not as respectable as she seems. Soon he's involved in a world of lust and dark inspiration, and emotional stakes beyond anything he's encountered before.

So, yeah... Caressa is a Diva, a child prodigy who is now 20 years old. But Kyle doesn't let her steamroll right over him. He learned from his time with Jeremy. He knows what didn't work before, and he's determined to not make the same mistakes twice. I love that he has enough self respect, and self worth, to stand up for himself.

I think that's all I can say about the book without giving spoilers. It's a beautiful story. One that ended with me in tears. Happy tears. Good tears. But I had to blow my nose and clear my eyes up to read the last two or three paragraphs.

Annabel Joseph is a gifted writer, truly skilled in the way she can evoke feelings and emotions with words on a page. Caressa's Knees is one of her better books, and there is nothing wrong with the others.  Also, the BDSM isn't all that intense, so if you are uncomfortable with the more extreme stuff then this would be a good book of hers to read.


BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: Light bondage (using a shirt to restrain hands, or a set of cuffs to restrain hands), and some disciplne - 2 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: Yes and no. When in a scene the D/s is nice, not too serious but still there. But outside of scenes it's not really there for the majority of the book. It's perfect for this couple.  2 of 3
• Sadism and Masochism: Just a touch. 1 of 3.
• Extra Point: No, this is a love story with a touch of kink thrown in. Not a BDSM relationship with a love story surrounding it.

As for the writing elements, the plot is beautiful, pacing was perfect, prose and dialogue were skillfully woven together as only a gifted author can manage. Annabel Joseph's character development is always exceptional, but I believe she has outdone herself with Caressa's Knees.

• Book Rating:: 10 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 5 of 10
• Heat Level: 5 of 5

Caressa's Knees is the best book I've read in a very long while, which is exactly the way I felt about Comfort Object when I read it. Both books can be read as stand alone books, but I'm glad I already knew Kyle when Caressa's Knees began.

1. Comfort Object
2. Caressa's Knees


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Catalyst by S.L. Armstrong and K. Piet

   

I've been in a bit of a reading funk. The last three books I've attempted to read (excluding this one) have been DNF's for me, and that's bugged me. But I just couldn't finish the books. In one of them I actually got angry at a cheap plot device and put the book down. I have not reviewed the books because I don't think I can do so without coming off as a bitch. All three books were new-to-me authors, where either the author or the publisher sent me the book. But, the blurb on all three sounded interesting.

Catalyst was also sent to me by the publisher, and in this case the blurb made me cautious, as I do believe that for ethical reasons, a therapist or psychiatrist should not allow themselves to get involved with a patient. However, I decided to go ahead and give it a try, anyway.

As it turns out, the way the authors treated the therapist-patient relationship, and because it is the patient who is the Dom... the relationship didn't bother me as much as it normally would. Still unethical, but because of the circumstances I could still read and enjoy the book.

Here's the blurb:

Logan Walker has a problem. He has a blood fetish. A compulsion he can't seem to control. After almost killing his newest submissive, Logan decides enough is enough and he seeks help. Help happens to be in the form of an athletic, smart psychologist by the name of Dr. Kasper Bromley.

Kasper, though, soon finds himself swept up in the fantasies Logan came to him to control. Reluctantly throwing his ethics to the wind, Kasper submits himself to Logan, gambling his career, his future, and his heart on a man who craves his blood and submission.

The blurb describes less than half of the book, as the authors took things in a direction that I had not expected them to go.

Catalyst, for a short time, is about the physical aspects of fetish, kink, and BDSM. But then it transforms into being almost solely about the mental aspects. I can't say a lot more than that without giving spoilers.

I am not into blood play, not even a teeny tiny bit. But for the most part the blood play in the book didn't squick me too bad. It is talked about a good deal, but is not experienced in scenes very often.

Rating the BDSM elements is going to be tricky without giving spoilers, but I'll give it a try.

BDSM elements:

• Bondage and Discipline: No major discipline, some bondage. 2 of 3
• Dominance and Submission: Yes. Sort of, but it gets all screwed up. There is Dominance, but I'm not so sure about the submission part. 1 of 3.
• Sadism and Masochism: Yes. 3 of 3, though some of it goes too far, even for me.
• Extra Point: No

As for the writing elements: The plot was interesting with parts of it not being predictable. Pacing had some issues. I don't recall problems with the prose or dialogue. Character development was exceptionally well done.

• Book Rating::8 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 6 of 10, but be aware the S&M is intense
• Heat Level: 4 of 5

Catalyst was a nice change of pace. And it made me think. It is easy for a masochist to get addicted, the body makes some powerful drugs (endorphins), and I'm well aware of the process of trying to keep upping the ante without causing harm.

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A few short reviews

 

I have not been home for a while, and I packed my Kindle and Netbook but didn't want to have to deal with my laptop. This means I've read a lot, but haven't had the patience to type a full review on this cramped keyboard. I love my netbook, it fits in my purse and weighs practically nothing. Unfortunately, the downside of that is the keyboard is just small enough I can't touch type. So here are the books I've read with a brief review for now - with a full review to come at a later date:

Inferno: Training Session by Anna Leigh Keaton

What is a couple do when they discover they are both submissive? Find a Dom couple to work with them, of course. This was an enjoyable short story with a satisfying ending. 

Garnet: A Season in Hell by Syd McGinley

Not what I expect from Syd McGinley, but it was still an engaging story with interesting characters. This is not traditional BDSM, but there is exploration of the mental aspects of a Master/slave relationship where a very rich man has purchased the services of another for six months.There were pacing issues, but nothing terrible.

Threshing the Grain by Teresa Noelle Roberts

This is one of those erotica books you read for the plot and the worldbuilding, with the sex and kink filling in as icing on the cake. Great characters, nice worldbuilding, beautifully crafted plot... I thoroughly enjoyed Threshing the Grain. As a side note, I wouldn't mind reading more stories about the satyrs in this universe. Excellent worldbuilding.

I will give these books a full review at a later date, but I wanted to make a list so I'll remember. My habit is to finish a book and review it as soon as I read the last page. If I need to sleep on it then I write it up, sleep on it, and then make changes the next day. My organizational system doesn't allow for remembering to review a book a week later. Hopefully this will help me with that.

I am currently reading Two Masters for Samantha by Michele Zurlo. This is the third book in a series, and I'm a bit lost with some of the secondary characters that were probably main characters in previous books, but I'm fine with the main characters of this book. The author seems to have a decent grasp of BDSM, though so far the plot has been pretty predictable. I'll wait until I finish the book to say anything else.

Huckleberry, Pink: Dolorosa, and Sky Blue Pink by Syd McGinley

 
These three books are part of the Dr. Fell series, and I'm reviewing them all together because they are specifically about Charlie (aka Twink) and Ben.

Huckleberry is the story of how these two met and formed a relationship.

Pink: Dolorosa picks up six months after the events of Attitude Adjustments, and shows us Charlie on is own, living in an apartment.

Sky Blue Pink: Flying Pigs picks up two years after the events of Pink: Dolorosa.

If you've read the Dr. Fell series and are already familiar with Ben and Charlie, then I highly recommend these three stories, read in the correct order.

The BDSM is nicely done, the relationship issues are handled well, the various plots work well together, the pacing is perfect, prose and dialogue flow smoothly, and character development is stellar.

• Book Rating: 9 of 10
• BDSM Intensity Level: 8 of 10
• Heat Level: 5 of 5

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