Category Archives: BDSM

April 27, 2015 · 11:57 pm

Review: Wicked Exposure by Katana Collins

wicked exposureTitle: Wicked Exposure by Katana Collins
Wicked Exposure Series Book Two
Publisher: Kensington
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic, BDSM elements, Mystery/Suspense
Length: 352 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Nothing left to hide. . .

A forensic photographer with the NYPD, Jessica is devastated to receive word of her sister’s death in a robbery gone awry. But when she arrives home in Portland and the local PD asks her to take pictures, she finds more than she bargained for. With each new photo she exposes more of her sister’s secret erotic life. And when she shares her discoveries with Sam, the super sexy local detective, she experiences passion she never knew possible. But Jessica soon learns she’s merely a pawn in a deadly game of betrayal and revenge and begins to wonder if her next picture could be her last. . .

Review:

Wicked Exposure by Katana Collins is an intriguing mystery that also has a BDSM element. This second installment in the Wicked Exposure series picks up with Jessica Walters discovering there is much more to her sister Cassandra’s life and death than she could possibly have imagined.

Jessica is a forensic photographer who returns to her hometown of Portland, ME after Cass’s murder. Told her sister’s death was a robbery gone wrong, Jessica quickly uncovers startling evidence that Cass was most likely mixed up in something illegal. Even more shocking is the realization that her straight-laced sister was actively involved in the BDSM lifestyle as well. In order to learn the truth about Cass’s death, Jessica takes a job with the local police department where she becomes reacquainted with old childhood friend, Sam McCloskey, the lead detective on her sister’s case. It quickly becomes obvious there is a connection between Cass’s illicit activities and her involvement in the BDSM community and Jess is willing to do whatever it takes to solve her sister’s murder.

Jess is a likable, but somewhat clueless, heroine. She and her sister have not been close for years so it really is not too surprising that she knows little about Cass’s personal or professional life. Jess immediately stumbles across incriminating evidence and since she does not know who to trust, she keeps this information to herself. Despite the unresolved history between her and Sam, Jess is still intensely attracted to him, but she does not completely trust him, so she keeps quiet about what she has learned about Cass.

Jess is equally distrusting of Cass’s close friend Dane. However, once she discovers he is directly linked to Cass’s involvement in BDSM, she overlooks her mistrust in hopes of uncovering a lead that will shed light on Cass’s death. But it soon becomes clear that the different areas of Cass’s life are connected but each new clue provides more questions than answers.

Interspersed with the investigation is some sexy (and edgy) hotness between Jess and Sam. Although they have not seen each other since their high school graduation, Jess and Sam share a scorching hot attraction to another. Sam is also involved in BDSM and Jess is only too happy to explore her submissive side with him. But how far is she willing to go with a man she does not completely trust?

Wicked Exposure is a fast paced and exciting mystery that is full of unexpected twists and turns. Katana Collins brings the story to a shocking conclusion that will leave readers impatiently awaiting the next installment in the Wicked Exposure series.

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Filed under BDSM, Contemporary, Erotic, Kensington, Mystery, Rated B, Review, Romance, Suspense, Wicked Exposure, Wicked Exposure Series

November 12, 2014 · 11:57 pm

Review: Prentice and Desiree by Brita Addams

prenticeTitle: Prentice and Desiree by Brita Addams
Sapphire Club Series Book Two
Publisher: Musa Publishing
Genre: Historical, Erotic, BDSM, Romance
Length: 190 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Author

Summary:

Guard your heart. Passion comes with a price.

Lost in grief, Prentice Hyde, the much sought after Marquess of Wycroft, salves his broken heart at the Sapphire Club. He wants love, but finding it presents problems of disloyalty to his dead wife.

Widow Desiree Huntington appears at the Sapphire Club, sees Prentice in action, and presents him with a request so seductive, he finds it difficult to refuse.

As their arrangement progresses, Prentice takes Desiree to the heights of sexual endurance and enjoyment, mires her in passion, and sees a way out of the loneliness that is his life.

But Desiree wants all Prentice has to offer—but his heart.

The Review:

Prentice and Desiree, the second installment in Brita Addams’ Sapphire Club series, is another blazing hot and highly sensual historical romance. This wonderful addition to the series is an emotional and engaging love story between Prentice Hyde (aka Lord Decadent) and widowed Desiree Huntington.

Prentice and Desiree opens with Desiree putting into motion a scheme that ultimately leaves her ruined and eventually married to a much older and oftentimes, cruel man. The story then quickly fast-forwards eleven years to the Sapphire Club, where Desiree is about to entice Lord Decadent into a very sexy and mutually satisfying arrangement where they can further explore their passion for certain elements of the BDSM lifestyle.

When the couple first begin their explorations, Desiree comes across as a strong, sexually confident woman. However, when her real motive for seeking out Prentice is revealed, she comes across as immature and spiteful. There is no denying that she truly enjoys the spankings she receives from Prentice and her passion for him is also genuine. While her marriage was truly horrific, Desiree does not accept her role in her downfall and holds on to her bitterness that her unrealistic fantasy of being rescued from her abusive husband was not fulfilled. Her acceptance for her own actions takes much of the story but much to my frustration, Desiree easily reverts to her old thought patterns.

Thankfully, Prentice is much easier to like. He is genuinely regretful for his past misdeeds and even more remorseful for the unintended consequences of his thoughtless actions. The love of a good woman truly reformed him into a loving and thoughtful husband who deeply mourns her death. While Prentice is once again an active participant at the Sapphire Club, he keeps his emotions out of his interactions with the club’s patrons. That is until he and Desiree enter into their arrangement and he unexpectedly finds his heart engaged by the captivating and intriguing widow.

While there is a bit of a BDSM aspect to Prentice and Desiree’s sex scenes, it is mostly limited to spankings. Desiree finds it difficult to fully submit to Prentice so their relationship never fully enters into the true D/s realm. Instead it is more of an equal partnership between two people who happen to share the same desires.

While it takes a while to fully warm up to Desiree, Prentice and Desiree is an enjoyable romance with a surprising amount of depth and substance. There is a strong emotional element to the storyline with both characters undergoing a great deal of growth as they not only confront, but overcome the baggage from their pasts. This beautiful love story is an outstanding addition to Brita Addams’ Sapphire Club series that fans of historical erotic romances do not want to miss.

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Filed under BDSM, Brita Addams, Erotic, Historical, Musa Publishing, Prentice and Desiree, Rated B, Review, Romance, Sapphire Club Series

September 15, 2014 · 11:58 pm

Review: Lucien and Serenity by Brita Addams

lucienTitle: Lucien and Serenity by Brita Addams
Sapphire Club Book One
Publisher: Musa Publishing, LLC
Genre: Historical, Romance, Erotic, BDSM
Word Count: 66,195
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Author

Summary:

Fulfill your wicked fantasies at the Sapphire Club

Serenity Damrill has returned to her husband, Lucien, after a ten-year absence. She carries with her a secret that could destroy her life and possibly all that Lucien has built. She needs Lucien’s protection, and she is determined to repair her marriage.

Quite happy running the Sapphire Club, where his clients live out their wildest fantasies, Lucien has no need for the frigid wife who deserted him the day after they were married. Though he still desires her, he doubts she’ll consent to the type of intimate relationship he craves.

But in the Sapphire Club, where rules don’t exist, anything is possible…

Contains elements of bondage, anal play, voyeurism, spanking, and lots of romance.

The Review:

Lucien and Serenity is the first installment in Brita Addams’ Sapphire Club series. This highly erotic historical romance takes place in a BDSM club where pain and pleasure are explored by Lucien, Serenity and the club members.

Serenity and Lucien’s whirlwind courtship culminated in a wedding a mere six months after their first meeting. Serenity fled from Lucien after their disastrous wedding night, and Lucien let his pride get in the way of going after her. Fast forward ten years and the couple finally reunites when Serenity seeks refuge with Lucien at his wildly successful BDSM club. Lucien is, at first, mistrustful of Serenity’s sudden desire to reconcile, but she slowly regains his trust. But when the reasons for her return become clear, will their fragile bond withstand Lucien’s doubts and suspicions?

Serenity and Lucien’s marriage is unusual because it was not an arranged marriage as was so common back in the early 1800s. However, the advice Serenity received from her mother regarding the marriage bed was, unfortunately, pretty much the norm for women. So when she took her mother’s words to heart, Serenity pretty much ruined any chance of enjoying the sensual side of marriage. Since it is very obvious that she is not as emotionally invested in their union as Lucien, the wedding night fiasco made it easy for Serenity to decide to flee from Lucien and enjoy her freedom. As the years pass, she meets a gentle man who introduces her to deliciously naught aspects of desire (much to Lucien’s surprised delight).

Lucien’s stubbornness and anger make it easy for him not to go after Serenity and by the time the two reconcile ten years down the road, he is hardened and rather jaded.  His close friend Prentice Hyde introduced him to BDSM side of his sexuality and together, the two men opened the scandalous but incredibly popular BDSM club. In the intervening years, Lucien has not pined after his wayward bride and after her sudden reappearance, he treats her like one of the club’s clientele. Lucien immediately sets about “disciplining” her but he quickly realizes that Serenity rather enjoys her “punishment”. They are soon exploring their mutual desire and his distrust fades away only to be rekindled when confronted by Serenity’s past.

The first few chapters of Lucien and Serenity are a little disjointed as the couple’s back story is presented in short vignettes. These quick glimpses are useful in showing where the characters’ lives have taken them but few details about their day to day lives are revealed. After their reconciliation, the story’s flow is much smoother and while past events are hinted at, little information is disclosed. Little by little, through day to day interactions and sexual intimacy, Lucien and Serenity regain one another’s trust, but they each make it clear any discussion of their pasts is strictly off limits. This, of course, sets the stage for the conflict that occurs later in the story and eventually leads to a shocking breach of trust.

Lucien and Serenity explore numerous facets of BDSM play including bondage, spanking, and submission. The various club members’ sexual exploits are also explicitly detailed as Serenity and Lucien indulge their voyeuristic impulses. There is plenty of hot sex in Lucien and Serenity but, at times, it overpowers the story.

There are a few of secondary characters on hand to spice up the story. Prentice is a very intriguing man and he is calm, confident and quite unflappable. I am very eager to read more about him in future installments. Lucien’s nephew Haynes is also fascinating and his story promises to be very interesting.

Delectably steamy and unapologetically carnal, Lucien and Serenity is a wonderful beginning to Brita Addams’ Sapphire Club series. Fans of erotic historical romances featuring BDSM are sure to enjoy this highly passionate love story.

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Filed under BDSM, Brita Addams, Erotic, Historical, Lucien and Serenity, Musa Publishing LLC, Rated B, Review, Romance, Sapphire Club Series

July 30, 2014 · 11:57 pm

Review: Home the Hard Way by Z.A. Maxfield

HardWayTitle: Home the Hard Way by Z.A. Maxfield
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic, M/M, Romance, BDSM, Mystery/Suspense
Length: 374 pages/Word Count: 94,100
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher

Summary:

Dare Buckley has come home—or at least, he’s come back to Palladian, the small town he left as a teenager. After a major lapse in judgment forced him to resign from the Seattle PD, Palladian is the only place that’ll hire him. There’s one benefit to hitting rock bottom, though: the chance to investigate the mystery of his father’s suicide.

Dare also gets to reacquaint himself with Finn Fowler, whose childhood hero worship ended in uncomfortable silence when Dare moved away. But Finn isn’t the same little kid Dare once protected. He’s grown into an attractive, enigmatic stranger who neither wants nor needs what Dare has to offer.

In fact, Dare soon realizes that Finn’s keeping secrets—his own and the town’s. And he doesn’t seem to care that Dare needs answers. The atmosphere in Palladian, like its namesake river, appears placid, but dark currents churn underneath. When danger closes in, Dare must pit his ingenuity against his heart, and find his way home the hard way.

The Review:

Home the Hard Way by Z.A. Maxfield is an intriguing and suspense filled mystery that is full of unexpected twists and turns. After a colossal error in judgment costs him his job with the Seattle PD, Dare Buckley returns to his small hometown of Palladian. Dare’s homecoming is quickly complicated by his friendship with Finn Fowler, a suspicious death and his father’s long ago suicide.

Dare and Finn lost touch when Dare left town fifteen years earlier and a lot has changed for both of them in the intervening years. Finn’s life currently centers around taking care of his Aunt Lyddie who is dying from cancer. Between his nursing duties, two jobs and his leather making business, Finn does not have time for any type of social life but he welcomes the chance to reconnect with Dare. Dare is not happy with his disgraced return to Palladian and some of the demons that led to his downfall are still plaguing him. His transition to the local police department is anything but smooth as he is faced with resentment from his fellow officers and the animosity from an old childhood nemesis. His reunion with Finn is uneasy and shrouded with unspoken secrets from their shared past.  A surprising attraction flares to life between them but a relationship seems unlikely amid all of the chaos swirling around them.

As children, Dare and Finn shared a unique but close friendship. Dare was a popular, well-liked athlete from a well-respected local family. Finn, on the other hand, was different from everyone else in just about every way. He and his mother were the target of small-town gossip and speculation and he had a difficult time living down his mother’s rather loose reputation. As the older of the two boys, Dare took on a protective role with Finn and kept him from being bullied by the other kids. Both of their childhoods were marred by the untimely deaths of Finn’s mom and Dare’s father and their friendship ended when Dare and his mother left town after his dad inexplicably committed suicide.

Now meeting on equal footing, both men have been shaped and changed by events in the intervening years. Dare is cynical, world-weary and his shining armor has definitely been tarnished by his poor decisions. Finn maintains tight control over everything around him and he keeps himself at a distance from everyone but his aunt. When Dare stumbles across Finn in a very shocking situation, the balance of their relationship is irrevocably changed. Dare is filled with numerous doubts about their future as a couple and when the case he has been working on breaks wide open, Dare realizes how little he and Finn really know one another.

Home the Hard Way is a compelling novel and Z.A. Maxfield does an excellent job keeping readers on their toes with quite a few startling plot twists. There are two separate mysteries that need unraveling and I was completely surprised by how these storylines were eventually solved. The one thing I really did not see coming is the direction that Dare and Finn’s relationship takes and while I confess to a few doubts about how they would resolve their differences, I was satisfied by how things turned out between them. All in all, it is another fabulous read by the extremely talented Z.A. Maxfield.

1 Comment

Filed under BDSM, Contemporary, Erotic, Home the Hard Way, M/M, Mystery, Rated B, Review, Riptide Publishing, Romance, Suspense, ZA Maxfield

May 27, 2014 · 11:58 pm

Review: Reflection by Elene Sallinger

reflectionTitle: Reflection by Elene Sallinger
Chrysalis Series Book Two
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic, Romance, BDSM
Length: 288 pages
Book Rating: C+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

When Two Bodies Collide…

The moment Bridget Ross and Connor Reynolds run into each other on the street—quite literally while out on a run—tempers flare. But when the two get together for an apology coffee date, it’s clear that the coffee isn’t the only thing steaming.

Connor is a charming artist without purpose. His own tragic past prevents him from putting down roots or committing to anything. Bridget is feisty but guarded. She’s aching to fill a void in her life but is wracked with guilt over her past and denies herself true pleasure. Can this gorgeous man tempt Bridget to finally succumb to her desires?

The Review:

Reflection, the second novel in Elene Sallinger’s Chrysalis series, is an erotic romance with light BDSM elements. In this outing, Bridget Ross and Connor Reynolds’ burgeoning relationship is threatened by the unresolved issues from their respective pasts.

Bridget is a bright, well-educated college professor in her mid to late thirties and her guilt and shame over her sexual desires have become tangled up with a traumatic event that happened while she was a college student. Although she has dated over the years, her inability to open up about her past eventually leads to the end of her relationships. Bridget is stunned by her unexpected desire for Connor, and with a lot of encouragement from her close friends Claire and Mona, she tentatively and cautiously agrees to date him.

Connor is a bit of a loner who is happiest when he is viewing the world through his camera lens. He is a gifted photographer and painter but he refuses to pursue either professionally. While Connor’s demons are less serious than Bridget’s, they do hold him back from taking risks and living his life to the fullest.

Connor and Bridget’s relationship is tenuous and while Bridget finally reveals her secrets, she remains unable to fully give in to her sexual desires. Connor is a bit of a contradiction as he continues to try to push Bridget’s sexual boundaries despite his assertion that he is okay with a “vanilla” sex life. Their problems extend beyond the bedroom as Bridget stubbornly refuses to confide in him about a troubling situation at work. While Connor is forthcoming about his past, he is not completely honest about how deeply his losses affect him.

While I enjoyed the overall story, I found it difficult to believe that a smart woman like Bridget would not be more proactive in seeking out counseling for something that clearly defined so much of her life. I was equally frustrated by how she tiptoed around the growing problem with her repulsive boss. While she gave some very sensible advice to one of her students, the plan Bridget devised to help the young woman escape her horrible situation was extremely foolhardy and put her student in needless danger.

Reflection is the perfect novel for anyone who is new to erotic romance. The sex scenes are sensual with just the tiniest hint of a BDSM element. They are tastefully written and many of them fade to black leaving it up to the reader’s imagination to fill in the blanks. However, if you are a long time reader of the genre, this might be a little bit of a letdown since the steam factor falls on the low end of the erotic spectrum.

All in all, Reflection is an engaging romance with sympathetic, likable protagonists. Bridget and Connor’s issues are realistic and it is very satisfying watching them overcome their troubled pasts. With tantalizing and intriguing glimpses of secondary characters Mona and Victor, Elene Sallinger leaves readers eager for the next installment of this sexy series.

Although Reflection is the second novel in the Chrysalis series, it can be read as a standalone story.

2 Comments

Filed under BDSM, Chrysalis Series, Contemporary, Elene Sallinger, Erotic, Rated C+, Reflection, Review, Romance, Sourcebooks, Sourcebooks Casablanca