At Her Feet

by Rebekah Weatherspoon

During a night of Web surfing for celeb gossip and masturbatory material, digital marketing producer Suzanne Kim stumbles across an intriguing thread while checking her profile on kinklife.com. Suzanne isn’t exactly looking, but the request for a very specific type of submissive from the attractive mistress, Mami-P, is hard to resist. Though the two hit it off during their first online conversation, Suzanne never imagines how strong their real life attraction and compatibility will be. After a few missteps in training, trust, and communication, Suzanne finds a deep love with her mistress, Pilar.

Overworked and overstressed in her daily life, Suzanne comes to crave their relationship for the visceral escape it provides, but before they can make the ultimate commitment, someone from Suzanne’s professional life threatens to disrupt their perfectly balanced bliss.

**This title includes BDSM and sexual situations some readers may find objectionable.**

Genres: Romance, BDSM, Erotica, Lesbian, Queer, LGBT, Fiction

216 pages, Paperback

First published September 16, 2013

About the author

After years of meddling in her friends’ love lives, Rebekah Weatherspoon turned to writing romance to get her fix. Raised in Southern New Hampshire, Rebekah Weatherspoon now lives in Southern California where she will remain forever because she hates moving.

Her BDSM romance At Her Feet won the Golden Crown Literary Award for erotic lesbian fiction. Her novella FIT (#1 in the FIT Trilogy) won the Romantic Times Book Reviews Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Erotica Novella, SATED (#3 in the FIT Trilogy) was nominated for the the Romantic Times Book Reviews Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Digital Erotic Romance and most recently SOUL TO KEEP VSS#3 won the 2017 Lambda Literary Award for Best LGBTQ Erotica.

Her 2018 romantic comedy RAFE: A Buff Male Nanny received praise from both Entertainment Weekly and the New York Times. You can look for her most recent romantic comedy XENI : A Marriage of Inconvenience now, and a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, A COWBOY TO REMEMBER, late February 2020 from Kensington Books. In the meant time, you can find Rebekah and her books on twitter at @rdotspoon and her website www.rebekahweatherspoon.com,

Reviews

[Sam Schooler]

I...have mixed-to-negative feelings. On the one hand, zomg an f/f BDSM book starring women of color that neither shames nor demonizes people in the BDSM lifestyle (and oh my god, there's a trans minor character!), but on the other hand, I think Pilar is terrible as both a Mommy and a person, and that pretty much completely ruined the book for me.

Most of this review will be under a spoiler cut. FYI, I discuss in detail the two situations of sexual assault that are present in the book.

AT HER FEET is well-written, fast-paced, and its main character, Suzanne, is engaging. I noticed a few editing mistakes, but they weren't enough to take away from my enjoyment of the book. What did take away from my enjoyment, though, were Pilar's terrible reactions to both of Suzanne's traumatizing sexual encounters with other people in the lifestyle.

In the first, another sub, who's over at Pilar's house for a playdate with Suzanne, takes one of Suzanne's stuffed animals and grinds on it, inviting Suzanne to join her. When Suzanne refuses, the other sub flips out and kicks her. When Pilar and the other sub's Daddy rush in, the sub claims Suzanne forced her to take her clothes off. Instead of listening to Suzanne, Pilar dismisses the Daddy and the other sub, then proceeds to punish Suzanne by taking away her cell phone. And then paddling her. Without any sort of conversation about what just happened. SHE PUNISHES HER. WTF.

After the paddling, at dinner, there's a conversation that is supposed to explain Pilar's line of thinking. She says, "You should have come to me right away, as soon as Holly's behavior was getting to be too much for you. You should have come to me, and Bizzy would have dealt with Holly. Instead, you cursed me out and accused me of things that you know aren't true. In front of my mentor" (Kindle loc 1356 of 3523).

All Suzanne accused Pilar of was bringing Bizzy into the house with her bratty sub. That's it. Suzanne was completely in the right, had just suffered a total violation of her private space, non-consensual visual exposure to another person's body and sex acts, and had then been LECTURED BY HER PARTNER FOR NOT COMING TO HER IMMEDIATELY. It becomes clear later in the book that Suzanne's automatic reaction to sexual abuse is to freeze. If this was Pilar's attempt to exorcise that reaction from her, it—and she, as a Mommy—failed.

Also, Suzanne is later expected to—in a way that I found grossly pressuring—accept an apology from Holly and become friends with her because Pilar is friends with Bizzy.

The second incident is much more serious. It's seeded about midway through the book: Suzanne gets creepy vibes from her boss, Valerie. She then ends up at a play party where it turns out Valerie is also a Mommy, with two little girls of her own. Suzanne informs Pilar, and while Pilar offers to take her home, there's this weird narrative thought process of Suzanne's where she decides to stay "for Pilar." If it was my sub who'd just run into her boss, and my sub was clearly uncomfortable, I'd remove her from the situation. Because that's how it should work.

Nothing happens with Valerie at the party, but at 89 percent (Kindle loc 3122 of 3523), Valerie calls Suzanne to her office at work and proceeds to sexually assault her while suggesting Pilar is attempting to broker a deal where Valerie will take Suzanne on as her new little. Suzanne flees the office in a panic. She says she's not ready to talk to Pilar about it, so instead calls her parents and talks to her best friend. Hours go by. I need to talk to Pilar first. But as the afternoon goes by and I hear nothing from her—no texts, no calls, no replies to my frantic messages—I consider getting back to Liam (Kindle loc 3221 of 3523).

Suzanne finally gets a call from Bizzy and joins Bizzy and Holly at Bizzy's house, where Bizzy tells her that not only is Pilar aware of what Valerie did, but she's already spoken to Valerie. She's spoken to Valerie. But not Suzanne. Here's Bizzy's explanation of how that conversation went:

"Pilar is having some doubts."
"About me?"
"About herself. Valerie called her this afternoon and told her about your exchange this morning. She proposed that she take you on. Pilar said no, but she called me because she saw some valid points in Valerie's argument" (Kindle loc 3267 of 3523).

What the holy flying fuck. So Pilar knows via Suzanne's horrified text messages that Suzanne is upset. That she was assaulted. That she doesn't want to stay silent about it. But instead of calling Suzanne or, you know, THE FUCKING COPS (pretending for two seconds that the cops would actually give a shit), she decides that oh, Valerie, the person who just sexually assaulted my submissive and girlfriend, has got some valid points!

This is the point where I completely checked out of the book. I read through to the end because I care about Suzanne, but yeah, no. No responsible dominant of any form would ever pull the kind of shit Pilar did, and I wouldn't trust her to watch my houseplant, let alone an actual living breathing thinking submissive person. Nah. Nope.

I'll read more from Rebekah Weatherspoon—I just finished TREASURE and am looking forward to her sorority series—but probably not anything to do with BDSM.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this one. The writing was tight, the romance was sweet, and the characters realistic. I'm not going to bother with a recap because the book's description is pretty much bang on.

I expected the book to be erotic after following the author's promo posts on tumblr, but I was surprised to find out that this is an age play story. Looking back at the book description, I maybe should have seen it coming with the reference to Pilar's online handle "Mami-P". That said, I've found it very different from other age play books I've read before. Age play can be a mixed bag with a whole lot of it being non-con and written in a style where the fetish is the main point of the story (and if that's your thing, that's fine, it's just not mine). This is the first age play story I've ever read where it's still a romance more than anything else, so while it's a huge component of the characters and their relationship, there's still more to them than their statuses as big and little.

If you like funny, sweet, lovely erotic romance, give it a try.

2016 reread: I still adore this book. I think the thing that stood out for me most this time was the glimpses into the vanilla side of their relationship, where they're just girlfriends.

Full review here: http://www.thelesbianreview.com/at-he...

[lauraღ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This won't work for everyone and it didn't completely work for me, sadly. I had the potential to like this a lot more than I did (I'm always in the market for good f/f erotica), but the last quarter of the book just wasn't it for me. I always have to tread light with BDSM romances because I'm just so picky! There's one aspect of the kink that I wasn't prepared for, but I genuinely didn't mind it. It's some other, more mundane things that ended up bugging me.

Suzanne and Pilar meet on a kinky website, and embark on a relationship that addresses both their needs. I really liked that this was super frank and open in discussions about sexuality and kink. They both have to figure out exactly how they fit together, and it's always rewarding reading that, instead of a scenario where they magically slot together perfectly. This slants more to erotica than romance, but the sex scenes never got overwhelming, or boring, for that matter. I really liked Suzanne as a character, and Pilar had her good qualities as well. Their chemistry was fantastic.

Where this started to fail for me, I guess, is with some of Pilar's attitudes/reactions. A couple things she said about withholding affection so that Suzanne would always come back to her sorta rubbed me the wrong way. She wants almost total control over Suzanne, and it works, because that meshes well with Suzanne's needs, but I didn't love it. This has more to do with my own likes more than anything; I just don't enjoy reading about lifestyle D/s, and as the book went on, we got more of that. Most importantly though, there's an instance of sexual harassment and then a more serious sexual assault, and Pilar's reactions to both incidents were completely baffling. Where you would expect her to go apeshit, or be super protective, or super comforting... she chastised Suzanne in one instance and distanced herself completely in the other situation. It was so confusing, made me mad, and honestly sapped a lot of my enjoyment for both the character and the romance.

This is also a book that shows its age in some of the language/terms used. Nothing super egregious, but still... eh. I've also read some of Weatherspoon's more recent work, and this definitely isn't her best writing. Nothing bad about it, just a little run-of-the-mill. This was really sexy and certainly different. It has its audience! I just really wish some of the character stuff played out differently.

Content warnings: mommy kink, age play, D/s. bondage, sexual assault, discussions of past abusive relationship.

[Les Rêveur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suzanne has realised some aspects of her sexual self she wants to explore further. After being rejected by her ex - girlfriend who first introduces her to kink/BDSM, she is left feeling unwanted and insecure. That is until one night she is on Kink-Life website and stumbles upon the profile of Mami–P. Suzanne is beyond excited to meet the exotic and gorgeous Pilar (Mami-P) and they hit it off straight away. They begin to map out their new dynamic as Mami and Little Suzy and what that entails. As they navigate their way, they fall in love but when Suzanne’s kinky private life with Pilar is threatened, can she trust Pilar enough to protect her?
This is such a great book and I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to review it so I re-read it before writing this up and I am so glad I did because I had forgotten how great it actually is.
Before I continue, I want to put a warning to some who aren’t interested in mild BDSM, age – play or eroticism because this book is packed full of it and as much as I loved it, I know it’s not for everyone.
I’ll be honest, when I first read this book the idea of age-play was not something I thought I’d enjoy reading about however Rebekah Weatherspoon introduced this aspect of the protagonist’s relationship with such respect and poise that it was hard not to love Pilar and Suzy and all their relationship entails.
I did love the moments that Pilar and Suzanne indulged in the vanilla side of their relationship as it really showed two women falling in love aside from the kink they loved behind closed doors. I really liked that the author did not hide both Suzanne and to some extent Pilar’s insecurities and how it strengthened their relationship as they work past things together.
The sex scenes in this book are hot and jam backed full of eroticism. The BDSM elements where great too and left me feeling a little hot under the collar. This aspect of the book was written incredibly well and even though I didn’t think age-play dynamics would be something for me, the way Rebekah Weatherspoon introduced it was incredibly sexy! Kudos.
Fantastic read. 5 stars

[Sarah]

dnf & 18%

MD/LG, which is fine, but not my thing, and I'm not feeling enticed to continue.

Great representation, though! F/F D/s romance, Latina and Black/Asian biracial MCs.

[♥Laddie♥ (Lee Lee)]

Nope, Nope, NopeNopeNope...

I went back and forth over whether or not I wanted to write a review for this book. 1.)Because it was a DNF for me and 2.)Because it is a F/f and it's such an overlooked genre that I only want to say good things about it. I decided to write this review because if I DNF'd any other kind of romance book I'd write a review and that really shouldn't change. Also, the fact that this book is F/f had nothing to do with why I disliked it. I've been searching for good F/f ever since I read Selume Proferre by E.E. Ottoman which was FREAKING AMAZEBALLS.

So, on to the book. You've most likely reasd the blurb but basically the book is about Suzanne and Pilar who are embarking on a D/s relationship. A Mommy/little girl D/s relationship. Now, I've read a few Daddy/boy kink books in my M/m travels. I've also read a couple of books with big freaking age differences. I'm not a stranger to that kind of dynamic. Where this book differed from those books, in a way that lead to me DNF'ing it, was the way the kink was handled. Not only does Pilar play the Mommy in a mental power exchange capacity that is seen in most D/s relationships but, in my opinion, she goes a little far. Pilar sets up a room in her house that is the "ideal little girl's room". It's pink with Hello Kitty, ruffles, and stuffed animals everywhere. This is where I started getting creeped out. Pilar also sets out little girl pajamas for Suzanne and the next day she dresses her in clothes that are as close to a little girl's wardrobe as they can get without drawing stares, as Suzanne puts it.

I usually have no problem with people's kinks. People get off in different ways but my brain could not compute how someone could get turned on by turning someone into a child visually. The little girl room, the little girl clothes...it was just too much for me. I tried to equate it to people being turned on by schoolgirl uniforms and whatnot but I was still not feeling the vibe coming off of this book.

I wish I could say that the writing pushed me to keep going but I didn't find the writing style at all engaging. Usually I don't mind first person POV but this time I had no desire to spend 200-300 pages in Suzanne's head. Her voicve was just not that captivating and by 30% I was skimming.

Oh, also, there was one moment in Suzanne's head when I kind of wanted her to just shut up. She's thinking about the relationship between her best friend Liam and his boyfriend and she thinks of how no one ever thinks Liam's boyfriend is gay because he "acts so straight". Yeah, what? Just...what? Apparently, the boyfriend watches a lot of sports. I actually had to stop and step away from the book for a moment because I almost threw my Kindle at the wall. People need to stop with this "acts straight" and "acts gay" thing. It makes me mad every single time I come across it and I wasn't expecting it in this book.

All in all, I couldn't bring myself to finish this book which is sad because I really went into it hoping that I would love it.

[Luce]

DNF. Just not for me.

['Nathan Burgoine · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you head into a Rebekah Weatherspoon book, there are some things you know you're going to get from step one: it will be hot, the story will move at a rapid clip and toss some unexpected twists your way, and the characters will be nowhere near the cookie-cutter women that you've bumped into so far.

And did I mention it will be hot? I did? Okay. Just making sure.

With At Her Feet, there was something else I hadn't expected: I learned. Here's the thing, the relationship between Suzy and Pilar isn't just a lesbian relationship (though it's an incredibly well written lesbian relationship), nor is it just Dom/sub (though it's incredibly well written Dom/sub). It's a particular type of Dom/sub relationship - a Mami/daughter type - and this was pretty uncharted waters for me. What Weatherspoon did - cleverly - was to have the relationship be so different from Suzy's last relationship that the internal dialog Suzy was having with herself about it was also letting the reader in on what exactly these relationships are supposed to be.

That's key to why this book is so damned good. Suzy and Pilar have a very unusual relationship in the sense that it's not mainstream on pretty much any level, but at no point was the reader left feeling that these two were not in a real relationship that was growing and evolving and - most importantly - built on love and trust.

Do they mess up and miscommunicate? Absolutely. Do other people nearly screw things up? Yep. No story is always smooth sailing, and the reality of that is apparent and welcome.

More than anything else, this is a great love story with two characters I really enjoyed. That it was by far not a vanilla tale was a lovely added flavor, but the framework was there - this is not a story that relies on the shock to keep you involved. Fans of The Fling will find this book new territory in one sense, but still a welcome and warm story in another.

[Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. I honestly didn’t like the Domme in this, Pilar. She was just not a good Domme in my opinion and she really proved that in the end when she pretty much ghosted Suzy when she needed her the most after Suzy was sexually assaulted by her boss. What an awful and selfish way to handle that situation! Suzy is a better person than me because she forgave Pilar with no hesitation and I was not here for that. All Pilar would’ve gotten from me for pulling that is a “fuck you” and my ass to kiss but I’m also super petty so there’s that.

Anyway, I wanted to like this but I didn’t like the relationship but Suzy herself was wonderful and likable and some of the side characters were super interesting. I also do like Weatherspoon’s writing style and the kinks in this 100% worked for me. Wasn’t an awful read or anything but left a lot to be desired.

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I really liked it because I read it in small doses, over a period of time.

[emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Welll. Ok. Um. This is one of those cases where I knew pretty immediately that this was not really for me. This is not a kink that I knew much about or am really interested in, but I found myself invested and curious in the story anyway, and just read it all the way through. Objectively, it’s a decently well written story with some interesting characters, bdsm elements (well, no bdsm focus, let’s be real), and a topic not often or hardly ever? Written about. I’m not one to kinkshame, so just because this is not my bag, I’m not gonna rate a book lower for the hell of it. I also can’t really find it in myself to justify rating it higher, because as I said, the majority of the specific overall type of kink (lifestyle D/s, basically?) that are displayed here is just not really my thing. That said, there were some fun sex scenes and it was a different and interesting read. I will admit to being caught slightly off guard about the end where a sexual assault happens and the reactions of Pilar and the way people treated Suzy felt… kinda victim blamey? To me? And I didn’t love it. But overall not a bad read if this is your thing.

[Justina Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book introduced me to the world of Mommies and their little girls, but that was only part of it. This variation on D/s was a whopping eye-opener for me and the primary couple was beyond fantastic. I apologize, but I need to publicly extol both Rebekah Weatherspoon and Bold Strokes Books right up front. I cannot personally vouch for the accuracy of this lifestyle as presented, but I can praise to the universe the 110 percent believability of the women depicted and spot on lifelike tangibility of the high powered work scenario.

Suzanne Kim has a Korean father and a Jamaican mother, but that wonderfully and tenderly rarely becomes an issue…a truly remarkable testament to the author. Suzy needs to find a Mommy and she knows her way around the ‘digital world’ so she plans out a highly commendable strategy and off she goes. The account of her previous Domme is somewhat horrific, but it only goes to show how spectacular Suzy’s new relationship is right from the start. If I had a ‘little girl’, I would really want Suzy to be her best friend.

Pilar attaches a photo depicting a gorgeous Latin woman along with her elegantly brief posting on Kinklife.com that speaks right to Suzy’s heart and probably dozens of others. From the start through the essential crisis moment, Pilar and Suzy’s relationship provided a fabulously engaging, provocative, and soul-stirring story. I love it when I cannot put down what I am reading for almost anything and this book easily fit the bill. It would be an honor to have Pilar as a friend or associate. She was amazing and oh so human.

Let me say without hesitation that everyone should read this story. However, probably folks who are more comfortable with sexually provocative f/f and D/s relationships will be completely satisfied. Nevertheless, I cannot imagine anyone with an open heart, curious nature, or passion for reading not enjoying this magnificent book. I am going to be redundant and say I totally recommend this!


NOTE: This book was provided by Bold Strokes Books for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

[Anelis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Age & mother/daughter play creep me out, so this wasn't my thing. If it is your thing though, you might love this.

I would give it 3/5 stars but there was a sexual harassment scene, the aftermath of which was handled poorly. I don't get why there needed to be drama for the protagonist to make life choices and grow-up. Weatherspoon also used the same trope in "The Fling".

Character in need of emotional development - enter drama - lover distances themselves in the protagonist's time of need for their sake - protagonist finds enlightenment - happy ending.

Personally I don't think the outside element that causes the extra drama is needed for the protagonist to grow as a person. But it makes an easy plot device and I'm ok with that. What I dislike is when the "drama" is a sexual assault/harassment. And what I hated was the way it was handled in this book.

Other than that, sure, this book was pretty freaking hot.

[Rea Nicole ✰ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suzanne Kim leads a busy corporate life in digital marketing but hasn't given up on finding her type of love through kinklife.com. After browsing one night Suzanne comes across a new profile for Mami P, a Latin goddess looking for her little girl.

Suzanne takes the chance and has plans to meet Mami P in person. Immediately when she meets Mami P, or Pilar, I imagine Papi from The L Word.

Suzanne becomes Suzy and the two enter into a D/s relationship with the Dominant and submissive titles of "Mommy" and the "little girl." However, each woman has her own struggles and it becomes unclear whether the two will achieve long-term bliss. Can Pilar successfully fully dominate Suzy? and Can Suzy let go of her serious ex-girlfriend baggage to fully submit to Pilar?

I had no idea what I was getting into when I first picked up this book! I wasn't expecting age play BDSM but after finishing it I'm glad that I didn't know the theme in advance. Age play is something that is hard for me to read but this book didn't cross the line for me and I found the story genuinely interesting. I felt the Mommy/little girl dynamic wasn't just written in the book for titillation but as an introduction to a new lifestyle for the reader. Although, I will never look at a teddy bear the same again!

Pilar is an enigmatic character as we never truly capture her essence or learn much about her. However, she is the perfect definition of a true Mommy Domme. She's caring, considerate, and doesn't take any sass! Suzy is a very flawed character but does her best to be a good little girl. Also, my favorite characters in the story were a butch Daddy named Bizzy and her little girl Holly. They were such a lovable and crazy duo I enjoyed reading the scenes with them involved the most! All in all I thought the characters were very creative and unlike any others I've ever read.

This book has a lot of juicy F/F love scenes and a unique plot that makes this a fun and sexy read! I highly suggest this book to those looking for an original read. Even if you have some reservations about the content I urge you to give it a try! This story isn't just a book-but an adventure worth taking.

[zenzeromante · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not a fan of BDSM books where the Dom/me is always right. Sadly, that's a storyline that happens all too often, and it happened in this book too. Or at least, here there's a big case of the Dom/me Always Knows Best Syndrome, to the point where Pilar ends up explaining to Suzy what Suzy is feeling—even when she does not have the complete picture. I'm not even angry at Suzy, because the story does show how she often ends up shutting down when people impose themselves on her, but all the more reason to find the way Pilar acts Not Great.

The worst parts for me where:

1) Pilar punishing Suzy because Suzy "humiliated" her in front of a friend—although Suzy was only defending herself after feeling threatened and harassed in what should've been her safe space to be Little. Basically, Pilar puts her reputation before Suzy's well-being, and that's so fucked up, because I can't believe that Suzy's internal monologue literally says, "This is not about Suzy, this is about Suzanne feeling hurt," and Pilar does not even stop to think about it. I know that 24/7 kink relationships have different rules and punishment gets treated differently from a non-24/7 relationship, but Suzy and Pilar are still starting out, they've yet to have the conversation about switching to a more serious relationship, AND STILL, even if they did have a 24/7 relationship, there has to be a time and place to stop the play and take care of a cared one getting hurt in their own home.

2) In general, the whole story with Bizzy was... not great? The moment when Suzy and Pilar have an issue—which is born out of a character sexually harassing Suzy and then going to Pilar to tell her about it, without actually giving her the full story of the abuse, which by the way Pilar doesn't even seem to doubt—other characters get in the way. For some reason is Bizzy who has to come to the rescue, Suzy doesn't even get to tell her part of the story to Pilar, because Pilar... is too angry... to listen? She just... jumps to her own conclusions? What?

This was painful to read. It makes me sad because there are so little Mommy/girl books out there, and this was just not it.

[Jem · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a BDSM book but it focuses on a sub-genre that may not have the same appeal as the usual bondage-heavy, pain-filled, D/s books. I wanted to be surprised so I avoided all reviews. Honestly, I was expecting something edgier but it actually turned out to be cutesier (is that even a word?). The cover should have given me a clue but I thought I was looking at a dominatrix and not the sub. :) Oh well, did I enjoy it? The fetish-specific particulars didn't do anything for me. The plot is realistic, though not very exciting. The leads are nice but bland. The sex is hot but not earth-shaking.

There are many lol scenes in 'At Her Feet' that I thoroughly enjoyed. The emotional ones though, don't come off as well..as Suzy the sub sounds too often and too much like a whiny, needy girl and the dom is just too 'motherly' to be sexy, although, of course, that is exactly what the author intended :) As for the author's prose, I think she'd make a very good YA author. I've read her first book (Better Off Red) which I thought was pretty good but was more YA in appeal.

What's with all the 5 star reviews? Didn't know so many people are into this particular fetish. ;-)

P.S. The cover may be adorable, but it's actually misleading. Both of the lead characters are clearly women of color.

[Patricia Foort · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!! Gave me a lot of emotions and thoughts. Will be thinking about this one longer I feel. The sex was hot 🔥🔥. Wished it had a epilogue, because it ended a bit abrupt for me. But 5 stars overall

[Meg ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

god forbid a girl has dreams

[usha✿— · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Yes, Mami. I belong with you, always. Naked at your feet. I want to be yours.”

This is a book which I'd either rate a 2 or a 5 so I decided on 3.5 and settled for a 3. Despite my issues with the story at two instances, I can't help but love Suzanne (and Pilar too).

The description is on point. Suzanne Kim—a biracial American woman with a very demanding job at an advertising agency. She has recently broken up with an abusive ex who introduced to the world of kink but pretty much shamed her for the link that she was looking for—age play. So when Mami P., on kinklife announces her search for a non-abdl, female little, Suzanne introduces her to the woman. What began as a weeekend arrangement stretches into weekdays and months as Suzanne and Pilar explore their relationship and ever-growing interaction. Their romance is sweet, sexy and loving.

My favorite point about this book is that it is very realistic, it shows the existence of a BDSM lifestyle relationship between two very normal people. While I do like CEO and billionaire romances to a certain extent, it's way better to see BDSM going beyond just spankings and bondage between people working average jobs.

I also really, really love Suzanne. There is a certain level of cuteness that I love to see in both the MCs, and particularly the little in an age-play dynamic is expected to be really “cute” in terms of style but Suzanne is just inherently very sweet and nice. Sure she busts people asses at her job but in the narration (which was from her first person point-of-view), I got a really nice vibe from her. Not a gullible sort of cuteness, but a “nice until I have to snap back like a bitch” sort of cuteness and liveliness.

There are two problematic points in the story which have been perfectly placed in this review by Sam Schooler.

The basic problem is that the book deals pretty lightly with both instances of sexual violation and sexual assault. Instead of talking about rape and trauma, the book made it about their relationship with rape serving as a plot device. Assault can lead to development of psycological issues. It requires therapy. I do not expect the law to deliver justice to Suzanne, but addressing the issue is necessary or at least don't incorporate it into the story at all. In BDSM relationships people have been known to withdraw into their little/puppy head space or develop an unsafe no-limits approch to get into subspace to seek comfort from the memory of assault.

So, yeah. This was not okay. Suzanne deserves so much better.

[Velvet Lounger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suzanne Kim lives a double life. During the day she is an up and coming digital marketing executive, holding down a stressful job, managing complex projects and handling difficult clients. In her private life she is a “little Girl” Submissive who has escaped a manipulative relationship and idly searching for her ideal Mistress.

When her favorite kink site throws up a gorgeous Latina “Mommie’, Mami-P, Suzy can’t resist trying to catch her attention. As they begin to explore a contract it soon becomes clear that they have the potential to form much more than a short-term connection.

But will Suzy’s trust issues and Pilar’s need for real communication be too much of a strain, or will other Mommies be the real threat to their future?

------------------

Warning – this is extremely erotic and crammed full of mild BDSM. If you don’t like full-on sex scenes and very graphic images – don’t read it.

We all have very different responses to erotica; some love it, some are revolted by it. If you like mild BDSM you will love this book. The sex scenes are extremely hot, well written, and varied. Unlike so much erotica I never once got bored of a tedious activity or repetitive language. Ms Weatherspoon has managed to write a book full of luscious activity without repeating herself.

What most people will react to, however, is the role play. I am sure most of us are aware of the Daddy/Boy scenario in the gay men’s scene. I had personally never come across the Mommies/Little Girl play in the lesbian world. Like many, I suspect, my first reaction was one of wariness. With a strong lesbian feminist background there are all sorts of triggers here about the abuse of ‘little girls’ and reading about women who chose that role was initially uncomfortable.

But Rebekah Weatherspoon has drawn us a character that is not a weak, powerless woman who gets bullied into submission. While she has been manipulated a past relationship (who hasn’t?) she had the strength to leave that behind when her ‘Mistress’ couldn’t fulfill her needs. When confronted with sexual harassment and bullying she is deeply upset, but quickly responds by reporting it and walking away, confident of herself and not prepared to tolerate the abuse.

Suzanne is a strong independent woman with a good job, a nice apartment, deep friendships. She just happens to like BDSM and enjoys the role of the Little Girl being looked after and cared for by a ‘Mommy’. Interestingly Susanne is taller than Pilar, possibly earns more than Pilar, is more than capable of acting like a grown-up girlfriend when she is needed, and frequently suggests the games and role play they enjoy. Yes, Suzy lets Mami-P take control and make the decisions, but she has power that is adroitly displayed in the delightful Catholic High School/teacher scene she creates when we see her drive Pilar crazy.

So, if you can take a moment to step back and get over any initial hostility to the role play, what we have is a well written exploration of how mutual attraction develops between two women who meet because of a potential sexual contract.

Suzy is a complex and interesting character. She struggles to balance her need for the Sub role with her natural management style and her trust issues. She struggles to communicate her deep feelings because she is scared of being rejected – something many of us will empathize with. The other characters are lightly drawn, even Pilar is left an enigma, but they give us a flavor of the scene. More than anything they demonstrate that these are a standard range of woman – some sweet, some bitchy, some stressed and acting out, some manipulative and aggressive.

The relationship development is the plot that holds this together and makes an interesting read. We see the standard early relationship fears and insecurities that we all will have been through. On top of that we have the highly important sexual chemistry. A contract based on BDSM needs is not going to work if the couple doesn’t meet each other’s requirements. And as an extra layer of complexity Suzy and Mami-P are trying to form a role-play partnership where each ones ability to fulfill a role is paramount. Ultimately that is the test that will make or break this relationship.

I thoroughly enjoyed “At Her Feet”. It is well written, well edited and well developed. The sex scenes are hot. The characters are interesting and, once I had overcome my own prejudices, I found the role play and relationship development really thought-provoking. I would recommend it to anyone who likes mild BDSM erotica.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Some minor issues in the first half with page after page of bigger issues in the second half. I love F/F and bdsm (even more traditionally taboo kinks), and this is probably the worst book I've read in years (maybe ever). Not because the writing quality on a prose level was poor, but because the author handled a few key plot points horribly.

Early on there's a consent issue with Holly violating the Suzy's safe space by both emotional, physical, and sexual means. Suzy gets blamed and punished for the interaction. Then she's made to accept an apology - and somehow the author believes Suzy would be comfortable with Holly again as a friend. Never once does Pilar / the MCs Domme apologise for any of this.

Suzy ends up at a play party and finds her boss there - a boss that's already been inappropriate to her before (just within plausible deniability levels). She is very visibly uncomfortable, and Pilar notices this; still, Pilar keeps them at the event.

Suzy is then (very detailed) sexually assaulted by her boss at work, again freezing in the moment (a trauma response). She immediately leaves work and confides in her parents and then sends a frantic message to her Domme, Pilar. Her domme ignores her, and a mutual friend (another domme) ends up talking to her, "trying to solve it".

What follows is talk about trading Suzy like she's a horse to barter with. Suzy has previously described this type of notion as expressly off limits. Then the Dommes suggest that Suzy doesnt actually know what she wants and that it's the Dommes' place to do basically whatever the hell they want. They both sweep over the sexual assault, and Pilar even at one points argues that Suzy's assaulter/boss had good points and keeps suggesting that she might be happier with that boss as her "Domme".

Pilar finally asks Suzy to come over and doubles down on all of this. She does offer an apology for withdrawing but none of the other problematic things she has said and done. There's no comfort for the sexual assault offered. And Pilar basically gives Suzy an ultimatum to make a choice of if she wants to be a 24/7 live in slave with Pilar - this meeting occurs less than a week after the assault when Suzy is in an incredibly bad place.

In the epilogue, we gather that Suzy's boss basically made it out okay. She didnt lose her job despite Suzy having to quit and currently being out of work. The only punishment for Suzy's assaulter seems to be being "blacklisted" from some kink events, which anyone in the community knows has very little impact on the consent-violators.

On other notes, there's lots of weird homophobic nods as well as some stuff that struck me as transphobic. There's a token gay male character who's partner "doesn't act gay". There's also some leaning into stereotypes of gay men in this.

As far as the transphobia thing goes, they attend a play party for wlw into Mommy/little girl play. There's several pages that deal with a trans woman / little girl character who's there and a lesbian couple that weren't comfortable with the trans woman. There's some invasive questions about genitalia. And then the author feeds into the common transphobic lesbian talking point with the trans character making obscene remarks about getting the uncomfortable lesbians to suck her dick. This was all just really unnecessary - like I 100% don't see the purpose of the inclusion of these story beats other than for some weird polemic talking points.

I don't know I guess to me romances require happy endings? And like, it seems the bad people won (and I'm not sure about the MCs long term happiness given the unapologetic shittiness of her Domme). I prefer my romance without detailed sexual assault, and I certainly don't want the assaulter to basically go unpunished if it has to be included. The inclusion of bigotry for no reason just also leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

[Etienne Telling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, where do I start with this sweet little title?

It was oh so unexpected, sweet, romantic, and very real story. Weatherspoon crafted a beautiful story, without sensationalizing what little a one/age play is like. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such an honest depiction of this particular BDSM relationship. It’s kinky, and gentle, and would be great for anyone wanting to explore the softer side of BDSM. As a person within the scene, so to speak, I can vouch for it coming off as realistic and honest. Pilar and Suzy are a lovely couple, I enjoy the side characters. I love that Suzy has a life of her own, outside of the relationship with Pilar, and as it closes, will still continue to live that life.

I look forward to reading other Weatherspoon titles, as she knocked this out of the park for me.

[Moose · Rating 1 out of 5]

Decent book that veers sharply into gross sexual assault

I liked the first 90% or so of this book. The writing style wasn't really my thing but it was competent and hot, and age play is such a rare kink that I really appreciated this book.

Unfortunately, the author then chose an extended and really creepy and disturbing sexual assault scene that was handled by the mommy in a hideously cruel way, imo. Then there's a few pages of making up and then happily ever after? It was way too quick and light an ending for such a disturbing and upsetting assault.

And now I am sick and shaking and cannot, in good conscience, recommend this book. It's unfortunate because the age play itself is really well done.

[Stephanie Ahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's been a while since I read this book, but it left such an impression on me that I got the urge to write this review out of the blue. Tbh I was holding off cus of some conflicting feelings, but overall I enjoyed the read.
The kink dynamics were the most solid part of the book imo, and I was surprised by how well Weatherspoon weaved in the mundane aspects of Suzanne's professional life and stresses. I was never bored, even when there hadn't been sex or even contact between Suzanne and Pilar for a whole chapter. But when there was sex, it was more like... an extension of the emotional part of their big/little dynamic? Like I don't remember the sex scenes as clearly as I do the image of Suzanne kneeling on the floor with her head in Pilar's lap as Pilar knitted. I appreciated that, because a lot of ppl seem to write kink into books as a purely physical, adventurous thing (which is totally cool and fine!), and in the process the domestic emotional stuff can get lost.
Also I seriously appreciate that neither of the main characters are white. Pilar is Latina and Suzanne is Black/Korean, and it's just an embedded fact of the book. Serious kudos for that.
Now, the thing that kept me from giving this book 5 stars: the ending. [[[[Mild spoilers ahead!]]] Basically, this horrible thing happens that wrecks Suzanne emotionally and almost wrecks her relationship with Pilar--and I can't say it wasn't realistic, but it felt rushed. I understand that Weatherspoon may not have wanted this event to dominate the whole book, but I believe it needed more explanation--how Suzanne's past with an abusive domme shaped her trauma reactions, why Pilar was not inclined to believe her fully from the start (which honestly kinda soured me to Pilar and her character), how the big/little kink community has problems that allows situations like this to happen, etc. Like I said, it's a lot, and I understand why Weatherspoon didn't want this to take up another third or even half of what was, up til now, a pretty cozy and romantic book. But some events can't be glossed over effectively, in my opinion. And because of the way this was rushed, I left the book pretty unsatisfied, and I almost wished I hadn't finished it to know that ending happened.
Overall: Good book, great romance, great kink, real characters, real emotions, but confusing and emotionally dissonant ending. The good 80% is still worth the bad 20% to me, but this isn't a book you walk into if you want to leave with uncomplicated warm fuzzies.

[Iben]

This is probably the most thorough review I will ever attempt to write. I’m not really a reviewer, but this novel moved me, and I’m unable to write anything about it unless I go all in, it seems. I want start by saying that if you’re unsure of the kink aspect of this novel, there are several other reviews which you should rather read than mine. I have never been in this exact type of D/s relationship, but I do have personal experience with BDSM, and a lot of what draws Suzy her to the Mommy/little girl relationship, makes perfect sense for me as a kinky person as well. Reading Suzy’s (the main character and narrator in first-person tense) and Pilar’s hard limits (which are wisely enough available in the sample), made it clear that none of the kinky aspects here would likely be a turn-off for me. I'm no expert in anything but my own kinks, but I'm also no stranger to these ideas.

Reading, for me, is partly a hunt for recognition on page; I love finding pieces of myself in texts, pieces that appear in new contexts, which open up new possibilities for reflection and insights. Reading a narrative about sex, love and power exchange in intimate relationships between female identified individuals - taking place in feminine connoted spaces, dealing with feminine connoted activities and types of relations is not something I come across every day. (Which is why I have been actively searching for them lately, and there are some good ones out there, this being one of them.) There are gender diverse characters in the book, persons of colour, and interracial relationships. I cannot begin to tell you how good it makes me feel to find all of these elements in one and the same book, within the romance genre.

What started out as a delightful, super hot, and fun read for the first half of the book, turned out to become a thought-provoking and very interesting exploration of some of the mental aspects of a D/s relationship, and the psychology of the submissive narrator. The last 20% of this book took me a long time to process. I was frustrated with both main characters, but in the end, what happened (and everyone’s reactions to that), ended up not only feeling quite realistic, but Rebekah Weatherspoon also managed to end the book on a very uplifting manner. No Domming your way through real life situations with no fixed answers, and no magical Dom mind reading (two aspects that I find annoy me endlessly in BDSM romances). And the way that Suzy struggled with trying to avoid her own issues that needed confronting, actually took on a bit of a humorous aspect for me, because I recognized my own tendencies so much.

What was discussed a lot on page, which was part of what took me some time to process, were Suzy’s “trust issues”. And yes, I do think trust is an important aspect of what made her so conflicted, and also created conflicts with other characters. But in my reading of her story, her unawareness of her own boundaries and needs were very much tangled up with the issue of trust. That triangle of needs to be explored/met, boundaries to be realized/set, and trust to be found/given, is some of what I think, beyond lots of fun, and potentially mindbogglingly hot sex, is what draws me (and many others?) to BDSM.

Another thing that Rebekah does in this book, by the way, that absolutely thrilled me, was to show the potential for fluidity in the power exchange in this type of relationship. There is no rule which says that the Mommy will always be the Dom, or the little will always be submissive. (This was partly what I loved about For Real by Alexis Hall. Now, I’m sure Toby would be furious with me for implying this, but there was an aspect of age play in there - at least for Laurence, I felt. That was how I read some scenes, anyway, and I was over the moon about them. But I digress.) Anyway. There was one scene in particular, where the dynamic was turned around in a sexual scene, and I found it so hot and freeing, it totally made me both shiver and giggle out loud. I would love to see more of this kind of fluidity in BDSM romances.

The resolution (which admittedly appeared very late in the book) turned out to be satisfying, though it was a bit short. It handled a very serious theme in kinky communities in a realistic manner; At some point, chances are you will probably know (or know about) someone who has been abusive (knowingly or unknowingly) to someone you know (or know about). It’s an important discussion to be aware of, and have out in the open within the community (as well as outside, I mean). And the reaction to getting that kind of knowledge is important both for the abuser and the abused. Trigger warning for sexual harassment and sexual abuse.

Now, some of my frustration with the main characters might have come from them having a 24/7 type of mindset, which I don’t know too much about. Expanding the reader’s understanding of that aspect could have improved the telling of this story, I think. The narration in general tended towards telling, instead of showing. But Rebekah Weatherspoon nails it in so many other ways, I can’t will myself to criticize the writing too much. There is so much to like here, and if some of this is your kind of thing, I recommend this novel wholeheartedly.

P.S.: I don’t care if I come across as everybody’s wannabe, moralistic grandma here (I probably am, tbh): Do NOT leave someone alone in a room when they’re in bondage. Create the illusion, by all means, but do not ever, EVER actually do it.

[Olivia · Rating 1 out of 5]

dnf @ 7 percent

Umm I thought this was gonna be an ff bdsm book and it is but it’s also mdlg which if u don’t know is mommy dom little girl. I hate that kink and could go on a long explanation on this issues I have with it but any way it resulted in a dnf

[Celina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I paused this one a number of times but I finally decided to read it and it was really good. The emotions.. wow. Though, the whole little girl idea...hmmm.. cute I guess.

[Briar · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the way this book started out but then it went downhill. As I got annoyed with the plot I told myself books need conflict and that I would give the book at least 3 stars, but I just can't.

My low rating has nothing to do with the authors writing skills, Weatherspoon is a great writer, and not just for the romance genre. My rating is about my dislike of some of the plot points.


My loathing started when Pilar took Suzy to a party she knew her boss would be at and then Pillar accused Suzy of not trusting her enough for being upset? I understand the rules that Pilar just couldn't say that Suzy's boss would be there but just dropping her in there with not warning about the high odds of meeting someone she works with feels like a violation of trust to me.

But what really took away from my ability to give this book 3 stars was Suzy getting sexual assaulted, I don't read romance for that. Not only was she assaulted by her boss but Pilar decided to stop talking to her for it. Oh sure there is a wonderful make up at the end and Suzy accepts all the blame for what happened and the boss gets a "bad rep" in the local community. After all that happened the happy ending felt forced and pasted on.


I feel like an ass for giving this book a low rating after winning it in a give away, and from everything I've seen I like the author as a person, I just don't like the book.

[Gabrielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I both enjoyed and was deeply unsatisfied by this book. While I understand that sex is a central theme, and I enjoyed the sex scenes muchly, I disliked how sexual assault was repeatedly used to drive narrative conflict.

There is so much undeserved expectations of trust in this book. It is demanded without being earned, merely on the basis of the early negotiated contract. The domme demands responsibility for the safety of the protagonist in the workplace, without making the long term commitment to the sub's financial security that comes along with it. Collaring is treated as a salve to trust issues rather than the culmination of building of trust, much as engagement or marriage is in a traditional romance. The discussion of dommes handing subs off between the for their own good illustrates a part of the community that I find deeply unsettling.

Rather than the assault being treated as a serious traumatic experience, it is merely another situation where the protagonist should trust the domme. The types of restitution and protection given are ethereal and to be honest not credible. I found it dangerous how the domme tried to handle the fallout within the structure of the power exchange.

I really enjoyed the everyday interactions, including the building of smaller scale trust, between the big and the little. The family interactions were real and endearing. The little playing with the neighborhood kids was super cute.

[skillwithaquill · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5ish.

I’m so conflicted about this one. I enjoyed the main character, the matter-of-fact exploration of BDSM, and the excellent sex scenes.

I was entirely turned off by instances of sexual assault that are handled very poorly. The Dom demands trust without earning it in very serious situations.

Maybe this is just personal preference, but the ending disturbed me.

Suzy is left without her job because of sexual harassment, and her happily ever after is supposed to be living her whole life as Pilar’s subservient? 😬🛑

Dom/Sub play is great, but Suzy’s collaring reads as her giving up all her agency to a Dom who failed to protect her AND suggested pawning Suzy off on the woman who assaulted her.

That’s far from a happy ending or a healthy Dom/Sub relationship. Suzy deserves better.