I liked this little trifle but - and I'll say this for every book in the series - they're all too short, Dare gives us some intriguing characters, with interesting back stories and realistic conflict, throws them together in a kinkerrific sex scene and then, bam!, the story is over. I always feel like I've only read the beginnings of a good, sexy novel. So a fun, sexy bit that I wish was longer. Completely unexpected turn at the end--and not in a good wayWarning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS. Rating: 5/10PROS: - I love reading stories in which a character who’s always yearned to be dominant or submissive finally tries it for the first time and discovers that it really is as good as he’s always imagined it.- It’s nice to read a story in which the sub doesn’t do everything perfectly on his first try. Not only does Hadley struggle to follow orders and remember how he should behave, but he has an all-out panic attack the first time he’s restrained. The best part about this, in my opinion, is Rawlings’s firm-but-understanding reaction to Hadley’s floundering.- Some of the lines, especially in dialogue, are dry and matter-of-fact in a way that made me smile. Case in point: at one point Rawlings says, utterly seriously, “I don’t joke about leather.”CONS:- Usually I don’t like stories that don’t have Happily Ever After endings, but in this case, the story sort of has one and I think it shouldn’t. The time frame covered is less than a week, and one of the characters makes a very abrupt confession of love right at the end that is so entirely unfounded that I actually scoffed out loud when I read it. Is one week enough time to fall for someone whom you’ve been admiring from afar for months? Perhaps. But do I believe in it if I haven’t seen any proof of that emotion in the character’s thoughts or seen more than a cursory exchange of dialogue? No.- The main characters are referred to throughout by their last names, which gives the whole story a slightly impersonal feel.- Dare often uses a descriptor to refer to a character rather than the character’s name (that is, “the dominant” or “the doctor” instead of “Rawlings”). I found it very distracting--especially when, for example, Hadley is referred to as “the constable” in the middle of a BDSM scene, when his role as a law enforcement officer isn’t exactly at the forefront.Overall comments: This is only the third work I’ve read by Kim Dare, and I liked the first two much better than this one. Dare does an excellent job with BDSM scenes--the one in-depth bedroom scene is hot--but the story here just didn’t measure up for me.
What do You think about Handcuffs And Leather (2010)?
I like how one character took charge and got on with getting the air clear.
—pilou
another great series this is going to be...loved it x
—lousqueeze
