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Tag: Smut Classic

Review: The Dominant by Tara Sue Me

July 30, 2015 / / 1 Comment

Author: Tara Sue Me

Book: The Dominant (The Submissive #2)

Other books in series:

The Submissive (The Submissive #1)
The Training (The Submissive #3)
The Chalet (The Submissive #3.5 – novella)
The Enticement (The Submissive #4)
Seduced by Fire (The Submissive #5)
The Collar (The Submissive #6)
The Exhibitionist (The Submissive #7 -coming on November 3, 2015)
The Master (The Submissive #8 – coming on February 2, 2016)

tl;dr recommendation: I’m completely tied and bound to this series.

Book Summary:

Nathaniel West doesn’t lose control.

As the playboy CEO of West Industries, he governs the boardroom during the day; as a strict dominant with exacting rules, he commands the bedroom at night. He never takes on inexperienced submissives, but when Abigail King’s application comes across his desk, he breaks his own restrictions and decides to test her limits.

Abby’s combination of innocence and willingness is intoxicating, and Nathaniel is soon determined to collar her as his own. As long as she follows his orders and surrenders herself fully to him, no one will get hurt.

But when Nathaniel begins falling for Abby on a deeper level, he realizes that the trust must go both ways—and he has secrets which could bring the foundations of their entire relationship crashing down…

Longer Review:

This is how you write a male POV novel that pairs with a prior story. There are so many new scenes, so much insight into his head and terrific heartbreak and vulnerability. I’m completely tied and bound to this series. THE DOMINANT leads you down the path of a complicated Hero, allowing you entry into the crevices of his mind that he doesn’t share with anyone else.

I adored Nathaniel. I mean, I thought I loved him at the end of The Submissive but NOPE, layers were peeled back and truths were exposed in THE DOMINANT and I’m now left feeling sated and fulfilled.

Nathaniel’s keeping his own secrets – ones that he thinks will ruin everything if Abby finds out. You watch him struggle with controlling his emotions and feelings. You understand why he shuts down the way that he does. You experience his complete and utter heartbreak and you become privy to conversations you never knew he had. What leads him to take the actions he takes in THE SUBMISSIVE? Now you know.

I was so excited to find out that Nathaniel’s actually active in the lifestyle and talks to other people about it. It’s a completely natural thing that makes sense, but for some reason I never really thought about how much I would enjoy the interaction he had with his mentors and friends. This book takes what you already know and tilts it, letting in the light, allowing you to see the story from a different angle. Exactly how it should be.

There are scenes that you only heard mentioned in THE SUBMISSIVE that you get to fully experience in this novel. I mean, this is perfection. Complete, fucking perfection. This one gets the complete five stars from me. It’s everything I hoped it would be and more.

Review: The Submissive by Tara Sue Me

July 28, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Author: Tara Sue Me

Book: The Submissive (The Submissive #1)

Other books in series:

The Dominant (The Submissive #2)
The Training (The Submissive #3)
The Chalet (The Submissive #3.5 – novella)
The Enticement (The Submissive #4)
Seduced by Fire (The Submissive #5)
The Collar (The Submissive #6)
The Exhibitionist (The Submissive #7 -coming on November 3, 2015)
The Master (The Submissive #8 – coming on February 2, 2016)

tl;dr recommendation: you need this now. Yesterday. Back in 2012.

Book Summary:

The first in Tara Sue Me’s seductive and scandalous series that has enthralled millions…

Abby King has a secret fantasy.

New York knows Nathaniel West as the brilliant and handsome CEO of West Industries, but Abby knows he’s more: a sexy and skilled dominant who is looking for a new submissive. Yearning to experience a world of pleasure beyond her simple life as a librarian, Abby offers herself to Nathaniel, to fulfill her most hidden desires.

After only one weekend with the Master, Abby knows she needs more, and fully submits to Nathaniel’s terms. But despite the pleasure he takes in Abby’s willing spirit, the Nathaniel hidden behind the rules remains cold and distant.

As Abby falls deeper into his tantalizing world of power and passion, she fears that Nathaniel’s heart may be beyond her reach—and that her own might be beyond saving…

Longer Review:

This book is a smut classic and #MustRead. There is a reason that the original of something is always better and Tara Sue Me shows us why. Nathaniel and Abby’s love is evident from the beginning even while Nathaniel tries to hide his emotions. Hard sex and verbal sparring made me knees weak and my heart swoon.

[I was honestly a little bit pissed off and my love for fifty shades slipped another notch when I realized how many familiar concepts I was reading, knowing that this book came out before fifty shades. I’m not saying that to dissuade you from your love of fifty, but COME ON. Regardless, THE SUBMISSIVE is extremely well written and I actually loved BOTH characters. In the first book. It’s a masterful *cough* concept, I know.]

This book will flip your mind around about the way a Dom should treat his sub. It’s a completely consensual power struggle that Abby desires and Nathaniel craves. Abby hasn’t lived in the lifestyle before, and she has no desire to be a sub to anyone other than Nathaniel, but she knows that she needs to submit, and she knows that she wants to do that with Nathaniel. She sees that he looks impassive and unfeeling, but she knows that his heart is pure and good.

The stars align and Abby finds herself in Nathaniel’s high rise office begging, in the only the way that a submissive can, to be his sub. Nathaniel’s not exactly interested in training a green sub, but it’s evident that there’s something about Abby that he can’t stay away from.There are ups and downs, as you’d expect, but Abby has a backbone and she’s not afraid to use it. LOVED THAT.

This story is full of so much kinky deliciousness that will have you thankful that Amazon doesn’t judge when you one-click the hell out of those butt plugs. I absolutely adored the way that Nathaniel treated Abby. He constantly cares for her, even though he’s clearly trying not to care too much for her. Silly man. Abby’s pretty much a goner for him at the very first utterance of ‘Sir’. Naked picnics, super bowl sex (holy mother of fuck that was hot), and snow days only increase the need that develops between them both.

There is so much sex in this book it’s surprising that they each work, but I was totally not complaining. I mean, there’s library sex. LIBRARY SEX. I was already addicted to this series, but the library sex made reading this series a compulsion. Sprinkled between the erotic trysts is a substantial amount of romance and banter that solidified my love for Nathaniel and had me smiling like a lunatic.

If you haven’t read this series yet, and you like BDSM play, you need this now. Yesterday. Back in 2012.

I love this series so hard! #MustRead. #SmutClassic.

Review: Natural Law by Joey W. Hill

July 4, 2015 / / 1 Comment

Author: Joey W. Hill

Book: Natural Law

tl;dr recommendation: a smut classic that is still relevant. Suspenseful & completely different than anything I’ve read before – loved it!

Book Summary:

Mackenzie “Mac” Nighthorse is a highly respected homicide detective and a career cop. There isn’t a dangerous situation that can back him down.

However, the personal becomes uncomfortably entangled in the professional when he goes undercover in a high class BDSM club as a male submissive in order to find a Dominatrix who is winning the trust and then murdering her chosen partners.

When his path crosses Violet Siemanski’s, he realizes he’s found a Mistress willing to be his ally in finding the murderess. But Violet is also going to shatter Mac’s shields and make him question who he is and what he wants, a challenge more disturbing than any case he’s ever worked.

Longer Review:

A male alpha homicide detective submissive?! I have now read it all. This is a suspenseful BDSM romance that had my eyes lowered to the page, begging for release. Violet and Mac are dynamic together – the give and take of their relationship is so balanced and yet utterly complex. This pushed me out if my comfort zone in a good way.

I can’t believe that this was first published in 2004. Joey was blazing a path that has exploded into the romance that we know and love today – SO THANK YOU. thankyouthankyou. Natural Law is well written and pulls you into the BDSM world. Before I knew it, I was bolted to the pages and hanging on for dear life.

Someone is killing sexual submissive men – and the police believe it’s a Mistress. These are smart men who haven’t published their sexual preferences, which makes finding the killer harder than the police initially think.

Mac is a cop. He’s big, he’s strong, he’s driven & he’s also a sexual submissive. He doesn’t have a safeword, but that’s because he has ridiculous charm that he manages to use to top from the bottom. But when he meets Violet at The Zone while he’s working undercover, she’s sees right through his bullshit. As Violet pushes past the barriers Mac has built around his heart, they soon realize that their relationship is turning into far more than either of them realized.

I’m not usually comfortable with group sex acts, but somehow Joey takes what could be an extremely uncomfortable scene and makes you feel the connection between the two main characters, pushing everyone else to the side. I loved Violet’s strength and dominance. I also loved that she was all woman – she isn’t overly aggressive or mean – and she uses her position over Mac in a completely believable way.

This book blew my mind. GREATread.

#DrunkReading, The Hangover Review: Thoughtful by S.C. Stephens

February 8, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Author:  S.C. Stephens

Book: Thoughtful – coming soon on February 24, 2015! PRE ORDER NOW.

Series: Thoughtless

Other Books in Series:

Thoughtless – CURRENTLY ON SALE FOR $.99!!! HOLY SHIT.
Effortless
Reckless

I reviewed those here. Go ahead, get caught up. I’ll wait….

What did I drink?: a bottle of Chardonnay. It was from Australia. IT WAS FATE.

How do I feel?: fine. apparently that’s what happens when you drink the whole bottle before 8pm & then stop drinking.

Book Summary:

In Thoughtless, Kiera told her story. Now it’s time to hear from the sexy rock star who captivated us all . . .

The only place Kellan Kyle has ever felt at home is onstage. Gripping his guitar in a darkened bar, he can forget his painful past. These days his life revolves around three things: music, his bandmates, and hot hookups. Until one woman changes everything . . .
Kiera is the kind of girl Kellan has no business wanting-smart, sweet, and dating his best friend. Certain he could never be worthy of her love, he hides his growing attraction . . . until Kiera’s own tormented heart hints that his feelings might not be one-sided. Now, no matter the consequences, Kellan is sure of one thing-he won’t let Kiera go without a fight.

Review:

Seeing this story through Kellan’s eyes was so much more difficult than I had imagined. S.C. Stephens packs this book with layers of emotion that get peeled back with each page. I had no idea of the depth of Kellan’s feelings…when they began…and how they took shape. This book gives you all of those answers and I understood Kellan from a place that I hadn’t before.

Thoughtful is everything you were hoping it to be and *double bonus* we get the story without being in Kiera’s head! Sorry, I had to. Kellan’s head is so much sexier anyway. The storyline follows Thoughtless pretty closely, which was fantastic, although I was a little concerned with where SC Stephens was going to leave us. Don’t worry, you get an ending you’re ok with! *deep breaths*

I loved learning how Kellan felt in each pivotal scene: i.e. the Expresso Stand Scene (HOLY SHIT), the car scene, the club scene, & the parking lot scene to name a few. And each one gutted me a little bit more. The emotional connection that I already felt with Kellan deepened substantially with each page. I was hurting for him. I was rooting for him. I was hating Kiera (ok, that part’s not new). It was really lucky I had that bottle of wine nearby. Perhaps they should package a bottle of wine with each book. Because, necessary. I AM NOT EXAGGERATING.

I was trying to update and share my feelings while reading, but I couldn’t give anything that didn’t sound like I was going through a gut-wrenching emotional breakdown. Which, is understandable, because that’s what this book reduced me to. However, it’s not a bad thing. Thoughtful is supposed to be intense and make you a little bit uncomfortable. Seeing these events reflected through different eyes challenged my views on the whole situation. Even though Kellan has been with countless woman, he has a new innocence when it comes to Kiera. It’s adorably sweet….

brokenwings

Thoughtful is the perfect addition to the Thoughtless series. It’s an insightful and emotional journey through Kellan Kyle’s eyes that you absolutely must jump on. Kellan’s vulnerability, strength, and inner struggle are worth the day or so you’ll lose when you read this book – PROMISE. So so good, S.C. Stephens hit this one out of the park.

{I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. THANK YOU.}

Review: Thoughtless Trilogy

January 10, 2015 / / 3 Comments

Thoughtless  Effortless  Reckless

Author:   S.C. Stephens

Books:
Thoughtless
Effortless
Reckless
Thoughtful – release date February 24, 2015

Thoughtful

Series: Thoughtless

tl;dr recommendation: An incredibly emotional ride that I didn’t want to end. WORTH EVERY SECOND.

Longer Review:

I think of this series as a Smut Classic. I’d like to say it’s akin to The Great Gatsby in the romance/erotica genre.There are shirts. There are mugs. There are keychains. I mean, people rave about Kellan Kyle with about the same zealousness as they do Christian Grey (yet another Smut Classic). Needless to say, I felt that my erotica education was missing a vital piece without having read this series. Truth be told, I hadn’t read it because i really hate love triangles. It’s a personal problem, I’m aware. But I had to get over it to read this series. SO, with the encouragement of some fellow bloggers (THANKS, LADIES) I dove in and read them in a weekend. So exhausting. SO WORTH IT.

Thoughtless begins with Kiera Allen and her boyfriend Denny (an Aussie!) who are moving from Ohio to Seattle, Washington for Denny’s job. Kiera is in the middle of college and transfers so that she can be with him. Denny had spent some time in Seattle as an exchange student back in the day and had lived with Kellan Kyle’s family, so it was only natural for Denny to call up Kellan and ask if he knew of any places where he and Kiera could stay. CRAZY ENOUGH, Kellan had an open room at his house. Thus, Kiera and Denny move in with Kellan.

Kellan is a rockstar. I mean, not yet, but basically he is. His band, the D-Bags, play at Pete’s on the regular and they’re as up-and-coming as you can possibly be for a local rock band. Kellan’s a local celebrity…he has fuck me eyes and the fuck me voice to go with it. Saying he’s a player is the Understatement Of The Year. Due to the fact that they live together & because they tend to like each other, Kellan and Kiera become friends. She’s incredibly attracted to him, but she really loves Denny, so she’s not really thinking about Kellan inthatway. UNTIL Denny goes to Tuscon for his job for months. And then…AND THEN….Shit hits the motherfucking fan. NO SPOILERS: The remainder of the series follows Kiera and Kellan’s relationship struggles – can they really begin again when their relationship began as a betrayal?

Full Disclosure: I hate Kiera more than any fictional character I have ever read. I actually wondered while reading this series whether I could kill a fictional character even if the author doesn’t. I was THISCLOSE to testing the theory. Kiera is obnoxious, annoying, insecure, and petulant. She’s worse than Ana from FSOG and I swear to Christ, that’s saying something. I wanted to shake her to death for 85% of this series. Which probably would have made her cry, since EVERYTHING MADE HER CRY. Everything also made her blush, but that’s for another day.

I’m pretty sure S.C. Stephens recognizes that Kiera is obnoxious….mostly because in book 2 Kiera actually admits that she is annoying. I felt so validated that I fist pumped by myself in the living room. However, SHE STILL HASN’T LEARNED HER LESSON. I mean, how many times do you have to learn that keeping something secret/hidden will only blow up in your face when the truth is revealed? PULL OFF THE BAND-AID KIERA.

AND YET I still love this series. Why? Because it’s really really good. It’s fantastically written. S.C. Stephens is a brilliant writer. Really. And Kellan will ALWAYS GET FIVE STARS FROM ME. Yes, this series is painful. and yes, I felt tortured through a good portion of it. I felt so bad for Denny. I then felt even worse for Denny when I was pulling for Kellan and I then had to wonder WHAT KIND OF PERSON DOES THAT MAKE ME? i prayed that Denny fucked someone else in Tuscon. But no. No. That would be too easy. But then, this series sneaks in to your core, nestles around and stays with you.  As I kept reading I fell in love with each character one by one. I, like Kiera & Kellan, didn’t mean for it to happen….but it did. God, I had a book hangover for days after finishing.

If Denny was an asshole – like even one iota of an asshole – this would have been an easier read. But he’s not & it will kill you. Just be ready for it. Of course, Kellan is also the sweetest, most thoughtful, adorable, hot rocker EVER. His little love notes in Effortless made me squeal. He just FUCKING LOVES Kiera and it’s unbelievably endearing. There’s a scene in a bathroom at a party in Effortless that is super hot…..and so so good. But Reckless is what completely made me a believer. Especially because somehow in the last 15% of the book Kiera miraculously found some confidence, maturity and a set of balls, it gave me everything I wanted and more. As long as I only read the last 100 pages or so I’ll always like her 😉 The award show?! I DIED. I FUCKING DIED.

The series is lengthy, but it needs to be. It needs all of those parts – I needed to physically shake during the creation of the music video in Reckless (not kidding. I was shaking. I was so fucking pissed), I needed all of the scenes that made me hate Kiera with such a fervency, and I needed the strong & steadfast love of Kellan (& well, also Denny) for this series to work for me.

The Thoughtless series is an experience. You have to commit – you have to stick with it – you will eventually fall in love just like I did……because sometimes the best things come from the most uncomfortable places. You’ve got this. THIS SERIES IS WORTH IT. I can’t wait for Thoughtful to be released!!!

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