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All They Ever Needed #1
As Natural As Breathing
For Christian Darringer, life isn't worth living. Just back from the Middle East - scarred and with permanent damage to one leg - he does not think anyone will want him for anything. He had't planned on meeting a gorgeous man he finds himself thinking about constantly. Pulled toward the startling younger man with striking blue eyes, he begins to question a lot of things -especially his sexuality. Not one to hide from a challenge, he plunges ahead only to find himself more than just attracted to Logan who is full of life and joy, he finds himself head over heels in love.
Logan Mannette has almost everything he ever loving parents, happiness, friends and security. The only thing missing is the love of his life, a love just like his parents'. When he meets Christian at a party, everything changes. Instantly attracted, he does his best to help this sad man and quickly finds himself feeling more than he has ever felt before. Raised in a domestic discipline household, he holds that ideal is what he wants but his interest in spanking has become a fetish and when Christian admits he wants to be spanked, Logan believes he might have found the perfect man.
Just as everything begins for them, Christian's past intercedes and one of his brothers makes waves about him dating a man. If not for Logan's support, he might have folded. But with the love of one amazing man, Christian finds that living his life rather than just existing is as natural as breathing.
Logan Mannette has almost everything he ever loving parents, happiness, friends and security. The only thing missing is the love of his life, a love just like his parents'. When he meets Christian at a party, everything changes. Instantly attracted, he does his best to help this sad man and quickly finds himself feeling more than he has ever felt before. Raised in a domestic discipline household, he holds that ideal is what he wants but his interest in spanking has become a fetish and when Christian admits he wants to be spanked, Logan believes he might have found the perfect man.
Just as everything begins for them, Christian's past intercedes and one of his brothers makes waves about him dating a man. If not for Logan's support, he might have folded. But with the love of one amazing man, Christian finds that living his life rather than just existing is as natural as breathing.
213 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 7, 2013
11 people are currently reading
235 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
February 16, 2015
I'm going with 3 stars because I enjoyed the heck out of this book. However, whoever edited this book needs to have a serious time-out in the naughty corner.
This book juggled a few topics that are easy to mess up. The main character has PTSD from his time in the military, so there are a lot of psychological issues that come into play. This book is also a GFY/OFY, which if done poorly can read really false. Additional, there is domestic discipline in this book with an emphasis on spanking as a fetish. The author managed to combine these elements in a surprisingly cohesive and emotionally charged way.
I liked so many things about this book. I happen to really enjoy domestic disciple books as that sort of lifestyle intrigues me. Here, it is kind of like intro-DD or light BDSM because it is really all about spanking for pleasure instead of discipline, though that is the direction the couple is headed in. And, damn those spanking scenes were HOT! The passion between Christian and Logan was absolutely palpable.
It is well known that I'm a sucker for GFY books. I can't get enough of them, when they are done right. I just loved going along with Christian through his journey of being attracted to a man for the first time. His struggles with his sexuality and coming to terms with his desires really worked for me. The author did a great job showing progression of Christian and Logan's partnership. Their relationship felt natural and they worked beautifully together.
However, this book was not without flaws. It has some seriously annoying and out-of-the-blue POV changes (one of my BIGGEST pet peeves). Also, this book is typos galore. When I read "prostrate" instead of "prostate", I actually growled out loud. Additionally, the author NEEDS to use a word other than "russet" to describe Logan's skin tone. NEEDS. Get a thesaurus, please! Honestly, I blame the editor for a lot of these issues. This book needed a firm hand (ironically for a spanking book!) in the editing process and I would have been blown away.
**Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
This book juggled a few topics that are easy to mess up. The main character has PTSD from his time in the military, so there are a lot of psychological issues that come into play. This book is also a GFY/OFY, which if done poorly can read really false. Additional, there is domestic discipline in this book with an emphasis on spanking as a fetish. The author managed to combine these elements in a surprisingly cohesive and emotionally charged way.
I liked so many things about this book. I happen to really enjoy domestic disciple books as that sort of lifestyle intrigues me. Here, it is kind of like intro-DD or light BDSM because it is really all about spanking for pleasure instead of discipline, though that is the direction the couple is headed in. And, damn those spanking scenes were HOT! The passion between Christian and Logan was absolutely palpable.
It is well known that I'm a sucker for GFY books. I can't get enough of them, when they are done right. I just loved going along with Christian through his journey of being attracted to a man for the first time. His struggles with his sexuality and coming to terms with his desires really worked for me. The author did a great job showing progression of Christian and Logan's partnership. Their relationship felt natural and they worked beautifully together.
However, this book was not without flaws. It has some seriously annoying and out-of-the-blue POV changes (one of my BIGGEST pet peeves). Also, this book is typos galore. When I read "prostrate" instead of "prostate", I actually growled out loud. Additionally, the author NEEDS to use a word other than "russet" to describe Logan's skin tone. NEEDS. Get a thesaurus, please! Honestly, I blame the editor for a lot of these issues. This book needed a firm hand (ironically for a spanking book!) in the editing process and I would have been blown away.
**Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
December 13, 2013
Okay, hmm, I'm not really sure how to review this.
Let's start with this: As Natural As Breathing is the first book by Thianna D. that I've read and it's probably going to be my last, for these reasons:
1. I had a huge problem with the writing. As has been pointed out before, the amount of times Logan's "russet skin" and his "beautiful blue eyes" were mentioned was almost ridiculous. If the exterior of a character is immensely important to that character, okay, go and mention it as often as you need. But, please, don't use the same words over and over again. Please.
That was only part of the problem, though. There were frequent POV changes that just disrupted the whole reading process. The spelling and at times grammar mistakes were pretty annoying (although that has less to do with the writing and more with the editing, to be fair). To me, the whole writing seemed pretty amateurish, I'm afraid.
2. The main characters - Logan seems like a complete Mary Sue: he's gorgeous, rich, extremely talented, (almost) everybody loves him, and he knows exactly what to do in almost every situation. Christian's PTSD is generally an interesting part of the plot - it's one of the reasons I got interested in the book in the first place - but I didn't think his condition was described all that authentically. I'm not a psychotherapist, but I do work in neuroscience, and this portrayal just seemed pretty off at times. Especially how not-affected Christian usually was when he was with Logan. Love conquers many things, but, call me a cynic, I don't think it just makes all your PTSD symptoms temporarily disappear just because the target of your affection is here. A person you've only known for a few days, mind you.
3. The side characters - the characters in this book generally seemed to be either black or white. There was virtually no other possibility. Most of them were unbelievably white, Kelli, for example, who dealt with the whole Christian/Logan relationship a little bit too well for someone who's still been in love with Christian just days before. And why again did she suspect that the guy she went out with and was engaged to was actually in the closet? I really didn't get that.
And, of course, the evil man was completely and thoroughly evil. As was the whole military apparatus it seemed. Including the therapists they pay for.
4. I generally don't mind the domestic discipline theme - actually, it was one of the reasons why I picked up this book, because if well done it can be pretty entertaining. However, if I had to read the phrase "paint that ass red" one more time, I think I'd've screamed. And not in a good way. Also, I really didn't like how Logan approached the whole thing with Christian.
5. The relationship happened so damn fast. Now that's something that you find in many many many other stories, so it's only a pretty unimportant dislike reason for me. But still. So damn fast.
6. There were plenty of developments that came pretty much out of the blue for me (like Kelli's above-mentioned revelation, for example) and there were elements that just didn't make a lot of sense. For instance, how long was Christian in the military again? And how come he was a major already? Or did I miss something important here?
7. I'm sorry, but I thought Logan's relationship with his parents was a little bit weird. I don't think of myself as a prude. I think it's fine knowing that your parents have sex. It's even acceptable to know if your parents are kinky during sex - not my favourite idea but okay. But to talk to your parents about your kink, to really flesh it out? Urgh. Sorry. That's just a little bit disturbing. As were a few other lines I found while reading, for example
Okay, I think I made my points clear. The truth is, I found the general setting intriguing (the promise of characters suffering from PTSD, the happy golden boy coming to the rescue, the domestic discipline component). But in this story it simply didn't work for me. Sorry!
Let's start with this: As Natural As Breathing is the first book by Thianna D. that I've read and it's probably going to be my last, for these reasons:
1. I had a huge problem with the writing. As has been pointed out before, the amount of times Logan's "russet skin" and his "beautiful blue eyes" were mentioned was almost ridiculous. If the exterior of a character is immensely important to that character, okay, go and mention it as often as you need. But, please, don't use the same words over and over again. Please.
That was only part of the problem, though. There were frequent POV changes that just disrupted the whole reading process. The spelling and at times grammar mistakes were pretty annoying (although that has less to do with the writing and more with the editing, to be fair). To me, the whole writing seemed pretty amateurish, I'm afraid.
2. The main characters - Logan seems like a complete Mary Sue: he's gorgeous, rich, extremely talented, (almost) everybody loves him, and he knows exactly what to do in almost every situation. Christian's PTSD is generally an interesting part of the plot - it's one of the reasons I got interested in the book in the first place - but I didn't think his condition was described all that authentically. I'm not a psychotherapist, but I do work in neuroscience, and this portrayal just seemed pretty off at times. Especially how not-affected Christian usually was when he was with Logan. Love conquers many things, but, call me a cynic, I don't think it just makes all your PTSD symptoms temporarily disappear just because the target of your affection is here. A person you've only known for a few days, mind you.
3. The side characters - the characters in this book generally seemed to be either black or white. There was virtually no other possibility. Most of them were unbelievably white, Kelli, for example, who dealt with the whole Christian/Logan relationship a little bit too well for someone who's still been in love with Christian just days before. And why again did she suspect that the guy she went out with and was engaged to was actually in the closet? I really didn't get that.
And, of course, the evil man was completely and thoroughly evil. As was the whole military apparatus it seemed. Including the therapists they pay for.
4. I generally don't mind the domestic discipline theme - actually, it was one of the reasons why I picked up this book, because if well done it can be pretty entertaining. However, if I had to read the phrase "paint that ass red" one more time, I think I'd've screamed. And not in a good way. Also, I really didn't like how Logan approached the whole thing with Christian.
5. The relationship happened so damn fast. Now that's something that you find in many many many other stories, so it's only a pretty unimportant dislike reason for me. But still. So damn fast.
6. There were plenty of developments that came pretty much out of the blue for me (like Kelli's above-mentioned revelation, for example) and there were elements that just didn't make a lot of sense. For instance, how long was Christian in the military again? And how come he was a major already? Or did I miss something important here?
7. I'm sorry, but I thought Logan's relationship with his parents was a little bit weird. I don't think of myself as a prude. I think it's fine knowing that your parents have sex. It's even acceptable to know if your parents are kinky during sex - not my favourite idea but okay. But to talk to your parents about your kink, to really flesh it out? Urgh. Sorry. That's just a little bit disturbing. As were a few other lines I found while reading, for example
Okay, I think I made my points clear. The truth is, I found the general setting intriguing (the promise of characters suffering from PTSD, the happy golden boy coming to the rescue, the domestic discipline component). But in this story it simply didn't work for me. Sorry!
December 14, 2013
DNF @ 59%
Nope, that's it. I quit.
Goodbye dialogue with NO contractions at all.
Goodbye Pleasantville Momma, Dad and dolls.
Goodbye zero sexual tension and bare mentions of DD and unarousing spanking.
Goodbye russet skin and piercing blue eyes x 1000.
Goodbye emerald green and maroon colour scheme x 100.
Goodbye contradictions and indecision as to whether Christian is cripple or fully capable.
Goodbye repetition of the exact same stock phrases. Exact same. Over and over. And over.
Goodbye to unfunny humour and unrelenting vanilla.
Goodbye to unnecessary descriptions of clothing, food, and meticulous mention of minutiae.
Goodbye to weird relationships with parents that push acceptance into discomfort.
And goodbye, most importantly, to the worst writing ever.
Congratulations though, Thianna. Whoever wrote your blurb, they're damn good.
Nope, that's it. I quit.
Goodbye dialogue with NO contractions at all.
Goodbye Pleasantville Momma, Dad and dolls.
Goodbye zero sexual tension and bare mentions of DD and unarousing spanking.
Goodbye russet skin and piercing blue eyes x 1000.
Goodbye emerald green and maroon colour scheme x 100.
Goodbye contradictions and indecision as to whether Christian is cripple or fully capable.
Goodbye repetition of the exact same stock phrases. Exact same. Over and over. And over.
Goodbye to unfunny humour and unrelenting vanilla.
Goodbye to unnecessary descriptions of clothing, food, and meticulous mention of minutiae.
Goodbye to weird relationships with parents that push acceptance into discomfort.
And goodbye, most importantly, to the worst writing ever.
Congratulations though, Thianna. Whoever wrote your blurb, they're damn good.
December 15, 2013
It's the gay version of Leave It to Beaver with spanking!
This author is new to me and I liked the cover so I requested it. It's categorized as BDSM but, subjectively speaking, I'd classify it as two guys who like spanking. The believability factor is my primary issue with As Natural As Breathing. My suspend reality matrix only extends so far and somewhere around 40ish% it went on the fritz.
Christian is a veteran who's returned home after being wounded. The backstory is that he championed a gay compatriot and had a grenade lobbed at him for it. Here's where eyebrows started to rise. He is sent to a German hospital where he's treated for homosexuality. Now, I've never been in the military so I can't definitively say that this is unlikely but… So, he comes home a broken man, meets Logan at a Christmas party and POOF! He's all better. No more moping, isolating, crankiness, nothing; he's all smiles and everyone keeps commenting on how he's "changed". Oh I forgot to mention he's "not gay"?
Logan is out and proud. His parents are all kinds of supportive perhaps a little too supportive. Logan is 21 and has the most blatantly open relationship with his parents of any 21 year old I've ever come across. His parents live a domestic discipline (DD) lifestyle which apparently they've been forthcoming about to the point that Logan has decided that he wants a DD relationship as well. With Christian. After one "date". I respect the fact that Logan and his parents are close but I had a hard time believing this level of honesty between parents and their children.
Most adversity or life challenges are handled in a trite manner most prominently being Christian's coming out. The way it was handled, I thought, was disingenuous and a little too…
He went from "not being gay" to out and proud and in love within the span of two weeks. Then again, I have problems with instalove in general so… there is that.
The characters came across as cliches especially Kelli, Christian's ex-fiancé who's literally lobbing herself at people regularly.
The dialogue is corny and frequently filled with people exclaiming things. The thing I had trouble reconciling was the formality of the language when paired with the informality of the characters. It just didn't jive for me even with the royalty connection.
There's a wealth of mundane details which didn't seem to advance the plot.
All that being said, it's very sweet and feel good and I've no doubt many will enjoy it. It's just too neat and tidy for me. I need some believability within the context of a contemporary romance.
A copy was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
May 7, 2015
When Christian Darringer comes home after his tour of duty in the Middle East, he’s wounded— both physically, and emotionally. Limping from a damaged leg, with scars all over his body, and suffering from nightmares, the last thing he wants to do is socialize, especially with his girlfriend, Kelli.
Then Logan Mannette enters his life— in the form of Santa Claus, of all people! A college student and drama major, Logan always volunteers to be Santa at his parents’ annual holiday party, and when he spots the sad and lonely man hanging out in a corner, he can’t help but want to cheer him up. He later learns that it was Christian Darringer, the young man his parents had asked him to befriend. Pursuing that friendship will be no hardship for Logan as he was attracted to the blond man as soon as they met.
Christian is also attracted to Logan, and he can’t understand how that can be true since he’s straight. Eventually, when they start to hang out together and his feelings for Logan turn out to be more than friendship, Christian has to admit that he may not be straight after all. It helps that Kelli is willing to be a friend, and throughout the story she provides that friendship as well as emotional support.
Logan and Christian soon admit their attraction to each other and slowly begin a relationship. Their time together is limited due to the fact that Logan has to return to school, but Christian feels warm, loved, and safe with Logan and finds comfort in his arms as he learns what it means to be in a relationship with another man. It isn’t until Logan spanks Christian playfully, and Christian admits how much he enjoyed it, that their relationship moves to a new level. Raised in a domestic discipline household, Logan was encouraged to pursue his fetish for spanking without any judgment from his parents and to discover that Christian enjoys being spanked is a dream come true.
Their HEA, or at least HFN, comes after several emotional hurdles— hurdles which Christian has to face before he can fully commit to his love for Logan.
I enjoyed this story. I think the author is a great storyteller and the characters were very well-rounded and highly engaging. Logan was almost too good to be true, and I sure wish I had met him first! Christian suffered from PTSD, but sought out treatment and used his connection to Logan to help him cope with the worst of his anxiety. Christian’s brother was the perfect characterization of a religiously righteous homophobe, and both sets of parents, though different in their own ways, were amazingly loving and nurturing.
Although the author referred to domestic discipline a number of times during the story, and Logan’s parents lived the lifestyle, Logan never asked Christian whether or not he would consent to live that lifestyle so I personally would not use this story as an example of domestic discipline. Spanking, yes— there was enough spanking, and discussion about spanking, to move this under the BDSM umbrella, however, I would have preferred to have Logan at least explore DD with Christian before the end of the story.
Another issue detracted me from the story— There were numerous typos and quite a lot of redundancy in word choices throughout the story and several word choices that were overused (e.g.russet skin). Though editing issues, they nevertheless detracted from my enjoyment because they changed the author’s voice from polished to average. So, although I enjoyed the content of the story, because of the DD issue and the edit issues, I’m rating this one 3 stars.
Then Logan Mannette enters his life— in the form of Santa Claus, of all people! A college student and drama major, Logan always volunteers to be Santa at his parents’ annual holiday party, and when he spots the sad and lonely man hanging out in a corner, he can’t help but want to cheer him up. He later learns that it was Christian Darringer, the young man his parents had asked him to befriend. Pursuing that friendship will be no hardship for Logan as he was attracted to the blond man as soon as they met.
Christian is also attracted to Logan, and he can’t understand how that can be true since he’s straight. Eventually, when they start to hang out together and his feelings for Logan turn out to be more than friendship, Christian has to admit that he may not be straight after all. It helps that Kelli is willing to be a friend, and throughout the story she provides that friendship as well as emotional support.
Logan and Christian soon admit their attraction to each other and slowly begin a relationship. Their time together is limited due to the fact that Logan has to return to school, but Christian feels warm, loved, and safe with Logan and finds comfort in his arms as he learns what it means to be in a relationship with another man. It isn’t until Logan spanks Christian playfully, and Christian admits how much he enjoyed it, that their relationship moves to a new level. Raised in a domestic discipline household, Logan was encouraged to pursue his fetish for spanking without any judgment from his parents and to discover that Christian enjoys being spanked is a dream come true.
Their HEA, or at least HFN, comes after several emotional hurdles— hurdles which Christian has to face before he can fully commit to his love for Logan.
I enjoyed this story. I think the author is a great storyteller and the characters were very well-rounded and highly engaging. Logan was almost too good to be true, and I sure wish I had met him first! Christian suffered from PTSD, but sought out treatment and used his connection to Logan to help him cope with the worst of his anxiety. Christian’s brother was the perfect characterization of a religiously righteous homophobe, and both sets of parents, though different in their own ways, were amazingly loving and nurturing.
Although the author referred to domestic discipline a number of times during the story, and Logan’s parents lived the lifestyle, Logan never asked Christian whether or not he would consent to live that lifestyle so I personally would not use this story as an example of domestic discipline. Spanking, yes— there was enough spanking, and discussion about spanking, to move this under the BDSM umbrella, however, I would have preferred to have Logan at least explore DD with Christian before the end of the story.
Another issue detracted me from the story— There were numerous typos and quite a lot of redundancy in word choices throughout the story and several word choices that were overused (e.g.russet skin). Though editing issues, they nevertheless detracted from my enjoyment because they changed the author’s voice from polished to average. So, although I enjoyed the content of the story, because of the DD issue and the edit issues, I’m rating this one 3 stars.
December 11, 2013
I got this title off Netgalley for an honest review.
I want to say first off I didn’t read far enough in the synopsis to find out this title had the elements of domestic discipline.
Yeah, yeah, I have a Netgalley trigger finger, it seems to be a malady I just can’t cure. I get too excited when I see what I think is something that I really like, only to find out that I missed a big fat disclaimer that this book contains something that really doesn’t do much for me, other than squick me out. So I am going to pretty much ignore that part of the story. I only want to add that I feel that the author did their research, the dd elements came off as very informative, and only cringed a few times where I felt that the very fine like from dd to abuse was blurry. Okay I have said my peace on that, on to the story itself.
The part of the story that I really LOVED was the fact that the author didn’t paint the ex-fiancé with the bitch brush. She was happy for both the main character, ecstatic even that they had found happiness in each other. This wasn’t enough to raise the rating to three stars though, cause the reason requested this book was the military aspect. I loooooooooove a good military man story, too bad this wasn’t.
I really didn’t like the story arc of the “friendly fire” which was the cause of Christian’s misfortune in the military. My husband was in the Army, and when I brought up that part of the story line he was pretty pissed saying that would be VERY unlikely to happen, and if so the outcome would be VERY dire for the men that caused harm. There would have been no shushed rumors of what had happened, there would have been no shrink in Germany trying to “cure” Christian. There would have been in investigation, and the guilty party would have some serious charges against them. The author never tells you what the outcome is, just leaves you with the impression that all the blame was laid on Christian. Yeah, I don’t think so. If this was before DODT he would have been discharged, if it was set after there REALLY wouldn’t have been any attempts to reform him for his “sexual deviance”.
So all in all this book wasn’t for me, and not because of the dd aspect, I found that part interesting, I just felt very let down with the military aspect.
I want to say first off I didn’t read far enough in the synopsis to find out this title had the elements of domestic discipline.
Yeah, yeah, I have a Netgalley trigger finger, it seems to be a malady I just can’t cure. I get too excited when I see what I think is something that I really like, only to find out that I missed a big fat disclaimer that this book contains something that really doesn’t do much for me, other than squick me out. So I am going to pretty much ignore that part of the story. I only want to add that I feel that the author did their research, the dd elements came off as very informative, and only cringed a few times where I felt that the very fine like from dd to abuse was blurry. Okay I have said my peace on that, on to the story itself.
The part of the story that I really LOVED was the fact that the author didn’t paint the ex-fiancé with the bitch brush. She was happy for both the main character, ecstatic even that they had found happiness in each other. This wasn’t enough to raise the rating to three stars though, cause the reason requested this book was the military aspect. I loooooooooove a good military man story, too bad this wasn’t.
I really didn’t like the story arc of the “friendly fire” which was the cause of Christian’s misfortune in the military. My husband was in the Army, and when I brought up that part of the story line he was pretty pissed saying that would be VERY unlikely to happen, and if so the outcome would be VERY dire for the men that caused harm. There would have been no shushed rumors of what had happened, there would have been no shrink in Germany trying to “cure” Christian. There would have been in investigation, and the guilty party would have some serious charges against them. The author never tells you what the outcome is, just leaves you with the impression that all the blame was laid on Christian. Yeah, I don’t think so. If this was before DODT he would have been discharged, if it was set after there REALLY wouldn’t have been any attempts to reform him for his “sexual deviance”.
So all in all this book wasn’t for me, and not because of the dd aspect, I found that part interesting, I just felt very let down with the military aspect.
September 4, 2017
As Natural as Breathing (All They Ever Needed #1) by Thianna Durston
4 stars
M/M Romance
Triggers: Homophobic tendency, attempted murder, PTSD, Domestic Discipline
I was given this book for an honest review by Wicked Reads.
I really liked this story. It was fresh, without being overdone and the dynamic between the two characters, while sometimes, very drawn out, eventually came together.
Logan has always been out and proud. His parents are very supportive, funny and love to embarrass him. Logan has such a great heart and he knows that he is going to do his best to find someone who he can love and who can love him back. While working on his double major, he tries to juggle what he thinks he wants, with his hopes and dreams.
Christian is struggling. He is horrified by the fact that his "friends" were so horrible that he feared for his life. While he is coming to terms with the fact that he may be bisexual or even gay, he is too scared to admit it to himself or his family.
At Logan's family holiday party, he is kind, gentle and loving with all of the kids who come to the party, but he's the most gentle with Christian. Not really knowing each other, Christian is put at ease and Logan finds himself attracted to Christian.
What follows is a story about friendship, learning to love yourself and trusting that when you love someone, they love all of you. Because this story spans three books, in this first book, there is more relationship around friendship and exploring Christian's sexuality. While they decide to be in a relationship, there is no domestic discipline between them and no sex. I thought this was a sweet story and I am looking forward to seeing where this story goes.
4 stars
M/M Romance
Triggers: Homophobic tendency, attempted murder, PTSD, Domestic Discipline
I was given this book for an honest review by Wicked Reads.
I really liked this story. It was fresh, without being overdone and the dynamic between the two characters, while sometimes, very drawn out, eventually came together.
Logan has always been out and proud. His parents are very supportive, funny and love to embarrass him. Logan has such a great heart and he knows that he is going to do his best to find someone who he can love and who can love him back. While working on his double major, he tries to juggle what he thinks he wants, with his hopes and dreams.
Christian is struggling. He is horrified by the fact that his "friends" were so horrible that he feared for his life. While he is coming to terms with the fact that he may be bisexual or even gay, he is too scared to admit it to himself or his family.
At Logan's family holiday party, he is kind, gentle and loving with all of the kids who come to the party, but he's the most gentle with Christian. Not really knowing each other, Christian is put at ease and Logan finds himself attracted to Christian.
What follows is a story about friendship, learning to love yourself and trusting that when you love someone, they love all of you. Because this story spans three books, in this first book, there is more relationship around friendship and exploring Christian's sexuality. While they decide to be in a relationship, there is no domestic discipline between them and no sex. I thought this was a sweet story and I am looking forward to seeing where this story goes.
September 7, 2017
I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.
I confess to being attracted to this series with the promise of m/m domestic disciple but this is only one thread that is woven into the story. Christian is scarred mentally and physically after returning from war and is struggling to find his place in life. Logan is happy but wants someone to love and a relationship like is parents have.
I really liked the unhurried pace of the story. Time is taken to set the scene and to get to know the characters. Christian and Logan also take time to get to know each other so the romance and sexual tension has time to build and slowly suck you in. And I was sucked in.
There were times I had trouble with the author's style. When we get Logan's point of view I found it odd that his parent's were referred to by their given names rather than mum or dad. This took a bit of getting use to. Also, the relationship each of the men has with his parents was more of teenager and parent relationship rather than grown man and parent. Having said that, they way Logan talks with his parents about d/d and his love life is decidedly adult. This I found unique and a little uncomfortable.
Overall I found As Natural as Breathing to be quite lovely and I've moved straight on to book 2, Took my Breath Away.
I confess to being attracted to this series with the promise of m/m domestic disciple but this is only one thread that is woven into the story. Christian is scarred mentally and physically after returning from war and is struggling to find his place in life. Logan is happy but wants someone to love and a relationship like is parents have.
I really liked the unhurried pace of the story. Time is taken to set the scene and to get to know the characters. Christian and Logan also take time to get to know each other so the romance and sexual tension has time to build and slowly suck you in. And I was sucked in.
There were times I had trouble with the author's style. When we get Logan's point of view I found it odd that his parent's were referred to by their given names rather than mum or dad. This took a bit of getting use to. Also, the relationship each of the men has with his parents was more of teenager and parent relationship rather than grown man and parent. Having said that, they way Logan talks with his parents about d/d and his love life is decidedly adult. This I found unique and a little uncomfortable.
Overall I found As Natural as Breathing to be quite lovely and I've moved straight on to book 2, Took my Breath Away.
December 13, 2013
I'm quite torn about this. On one hand, it's got some really great stuff. It's got these really visceral moments and the theme it covers is quite good. On the other, that kind of disappears and goes away and then you look at your progress and realize you still have half the book to go.
Yes, "holiday wears" is possibly okay, but for some reason, I get the feeling it should probably be "holiday wares."
It actually wasn't bad. It was kind of Dora-the-Explorer-y (you know, with the explicative aside moments and all), but other than that, it wasn't bad.
The sex was...awkward. Corny. Awkward.There was onomatopoeia. A lot of it. In all caps.
Today, I found out I don't really like onomatopoeia aside from the occasional "nnngh."
I just kept losing interest and losing interest. It's quite a shame, actually, because it started off so amazingly and towards about half way, I wanted to like it much more than I actually liked it and then I had to admit to myself that maybe I didn't actually like it anymore.
DNF ~60%
Yes, "holiday wears" is possibly okay, but for some reason, I get the feeling it should probably be "holiday wares."
It actually wasn't bad. It was kind of Dora-the-Explorer-y (you know, with the explicative aside moments and all), but other than that, it wasn't bad.
The sex was...awkward. Corny. Awkward.There was onomatopoeia. A lot of it. In all caps.
Today, I found out I don't really like onomatopoeia aside from the occasional "nnngh."
I just kept losing interest and losing interest. It's quite a shame, actually, because it started off so amazingly and towards about half way, I wanted to like it much more than I actually liked it and then I had to admit to myself that maybe I didn't actually like it anymore.
DNF ~60%
May 23, 2015
I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads
This is a slow burning of a book, but it certainly has some lovely passionate moments that I really enjoyed. It is an interesting mix of injured veteran coming home to deal with his past and assess if he has a future, and college student who wants to follow his parents' DD relationship, but has not yet found the right man. Some of the scenes are very moving, some are very funny. Overall I thought it was a good story.
This is a slow burning of a book, but it certainly has some lovely passionate moments that I really enjoyed. It is an interesting mix of injured veteran coming home to deal with his past and assess if he has a future, and college student who wants to follow his parents' DD relationship, but has not yet found the right man. Some of the scenes are very moving, some are very funny. Overall I thought it was a good story.
August 10, 2013
Loved this story. So it recommended in a post and since it combined my two favorite genres MM and DD I couldn't wait to read it. And I was not disappointed at all. This was all I hoped for and so much more. This is a deep story that really draws you. Even the secondary characters are fleshed out and made real through the story of Logan and Christian. Please, please let their be a second story to complete their story.
September 5, 2017
I received a copy to read and review for Wicked Reads
This book was really slow for me, I found myself putting it down and coming back. I liked Christian and Logan. I felt their connection and loved how they interacted with each other I just felt like something was missing. I wanted more and I felt it moved slow. I am hoping the second book picks up because I really want these two characters to go the distance.
This book was really slow for me, I found myself putting it down and coming back. I liked Christian and Logan. I felt their connection and loved how they interacted with each other I just felt like something was missing. I wanted more and I felt it moved slow. I am hoping the second book picks up because I really want these two characters to go the distance.
August 28, 2017
DNF @58% = automatic 3 stars
writing style wasn't to my tastes. Although I enjoyed the overall premise, I was never hooked and my interests waned.
writing style wasn't to my tastes. Although I enjoyed the overall premise, I was never hooked and my interests waned.
May 6, 2015
Pleasantly Tangled 3.5 Stars
First, I enjoyed the book. It was sweet, sexy, and charming. Christian is delightfully wounded with a grasping need to be who he truly is past his own insecurities and traumas. Logan is a buoyant charmer with a ready smile and quick wit...and a steady hand with a paddle. I'll explain the 3.5 rating below.
While Christian is the older man in the relationship (by only five years, but in your twenties, that can be a huge maturity gap), and a veteran of the Middle Eastern conflicts, he is the more damaged of the two men, wounded mentally, emotionally, and physically by his service and the betrayal he suffered at the hands of his own men. Logan is younger, and at first glance, a bit of an effervescent playboy. That's just the surface though, for both men, and Thianna does an admirable job of peeling back the layers to get to the core of each man, and showing us who they truly are, and who they can be together.
Pros:
Thianna D clearly has well-researched and comprehensive knowledge about the DD lifestyle, fetish practices, and handled the content maturely and responsibly. I was impressed by how she incorporated an almost instructional component to Logan's coaching of the lifestyle with Christian. He introduces his spanking fetish first, and clearly knows his man well enough not to scare off the skittish and (gay sex) virginal Christian with discussions of the DD (Domestic Discipline) lifestyle.
The obviously traumatized Christian was brought to the realization he had severe PTSD slowly, and naturally. Many veterans don't begin to experience symptoms until months AFTER discharge, and Thianna D walked Christian through the process with a deft touch. The panic attacks and flashbacks were well written and gripping, and felt realistic. Christian's reliance on Logan wasn't overplayed, and was tender and romantic. Logan, who as the younger man still in college, would typically be the "submissive", actually took the role as a competent, easy-going dominant. (Though to be accurate, he is a budding Head Of Household, and at this stage in the MCs' relationship, it is very much equals.)
I hate the fact that this book has flaws, as I am fond of it.
Cons:
Editing.
Whoever edited this book didn't give their best effort, not by a long shot, and did a major disservice to the author and the plot. The POV is far too fluid, jumping between head space and viewpoints in the same paragraph, and in the beginning, this is a frequent and often confusing occurrence. At points, I had trouble wondering who was thinking what, and remembering who each person was with the first-name basis the author employed with the parental units left me frustrated in the first few chapters. Addressing adults by their given names is great, but it made the parents seem to more of the MCs' peers and friends than actual parents, and it took away some of the strengthening and grounding foundation I think the author was trying to use them for.
I felt surprised, in a "what is this doing here?" kind of way when it was revealed that Logan was a practicing fetishist and aspiring Head of Household in a DD lifestyle. I was taken aback, and I KNOW I shouldn't have been, considering Thianna D's penchant and affection for the BDSM lifestyle in her previous works. The revelation felt like a sharp 90 degree corner in Logan's development, and Christian's seemingly spontaneous internal desire to be spanked was quick and equally left-field.
Final Thoughts: I did enjoy this book. Truly. I am happy with it, and I wouldn't mind adding it to my Reread pile. Sweet, sexy, charming, hit the right level of angst and tension. Well drawn and developed attraction between the MCs and I felt real chemistry. Thianna D is a talented author, and I will be eagerly looking forward to her forthcoming titles. I just wish that better care was taken with her first full-length novel (on this subject).
* I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.*
First, I enjoyed the book. It was sweet, sexy, and charming. Christian is delightfully wounded with a grasping need to be who he truly is past his own insecurities and traumas. Logan is a buoyant charmer with a ready smile and quick wit...and a steady hand with a paddle. I'll explain the 3.5 rating below.
While Christian is the older man in the relationship (by only five years, but in your twenties, that can be a huge maturity gap), and a veteran of the Middle Eastern conflicts, he is the more damaged of the two men, wounded mentally, emotionally, and physically by his service and the betrayal he suffered at the hands of his own men. Logan is younger, and at first glance, a bit of an effervescent playboy. That's just the surface though, for both men, and Thianna does an admirable job of peeling back the layers to get to the core of each man, and showing us who they truly are, and who they can be together.
Pros:
Thianna D clearly has well-researched and comprehensive knowledge about the DD lifestyle, fetish practices, and handled the content maturely and responsibly. I was impressed by how she incorporated an almost instructional component to Logan's coaching of the lifestyle with Christian. He introduces his spanking fetish first, and clearly knows his man well enough not to scare off the skittish and (gay sex) virginal Christian with discussions of the DD (Domestic Discipline) lifestyle.
The obviously traumatized Christian was brought to the realization he had severe PTSD slowly, and naturally. Many veterans don't begin to experience symptoms until months AFTER discharge, and Thianna D walked Christian through the process with a deft touch. The panic attacks and flashbacks were well written and gripping, and felt realistic. Christian's reliance on Logan wasn't overplayed, and was tender and romantic. Logan, who as the younger man still in college, would typically be the "submissive", actually took the role as a competent, easy-going dominant. (Though to be accurate, he is a budding Head Of Household, and at this stage in the MCs' relationship, it is very much equals.)
I hate the fact that this book has flaws, as I am fond of it.
Cons:
Editing.
Whoever edited this book didn't give their best effort, not by a long shot, and did a major disservice to the author and the plot. The POV is far too fluid, jumping between head space and viewpoints in the same paragraph, and in the beginning, this is a frequent and often confusing occurrence. At points, I had trouble wondering who was thinking what, and remembering who each person was with the first-name basis the author employed with the parental units left me frustrated in the first few chapters. Addressing adults by their given names is great, but it made the parents seem to more of the MCs' peers and friends than actual parents, and it took away some of the strengthening and grounding foundation I think the author was trying to use them for.
I felt surprised, in a "what is this doing here?" kind of way when it was revealed that Logan was a practicing fetishist and aspiring Head of Household in a DD lifestyle. I was taken aback, and I KNOW I shouldn't have been, considering Thianna D's penchant and affection for the BDSM lifestyle in her previous works. The revelation felt like a sharp 90 degree corner in Logan's development, and Christian's seemingly spontaneous internal desire to be spanked was quick and equally left-field.
Final Thoughts: I did enjoy this book. Truly. I am happy with it, and I wouldn't mind adding it to my Reread pile. Sweet, sexy, charming, hit the right level of angst and tension. Well drawn and developed attraction between the MCs and I felt real chemistry. Thianna D is a talented author, and I will be eagerly looking forward to her forthcoming titles. I just wish that better care was taken with her first full-length novel (on this subject).
* I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.*
August 12, 2019
There were lots of things I really liked about this one, and several things I didn't like... I didn't know what to expect coming into it, as I didn't read other people's reviews beforehand... It seemed great in the beginning, you have Christian coming home from overseas after being injured by some bigots in the military...
It seems like his parents are the Cleaver family, I know some people had a problem with that, but, Christians mom is from the deep south.. it's not uncommon there...Actually, it's pretty much exactly how mammas are there! I loved that part.
Logan's relationship with his parents.. namely his dad... I could understand where it would be a little uncomfortable for some people. I would never in a billion years talk to my parents about my kinks... my sister? Absolutely. My best friend? Absolutely... my parents? Uhmmm no lol I also would not in a billion years want to hear about my dad spanking my mom....gross...That part was a little much, I can understand Logan going to his dad for advice.. but... blah, I dunno... it was a little much how much they were willing to share with each other. Also, the spanking came out of left field for me... I didn't see it coming, we had no prior warning that either of them liked it and them BAM, they both do ....and to such extremes lol I actually like me some roughness so it didn't bother me in the slightest.. it just was unexpected...
I also didn't see how Christians ex that he'd spent 8 years with before he'd left could come back expecting them to be together, ready to wear his ring, then all the sudden wanna be besties and not care that he was with someone else. I mean, that's awesome... that's ideal.. but... I can't see how it would ever happen that way...That part was a bit far fetched to me, but hey.. it could happen.... Also didn't like how many times Logan said "paint that ass red"... was like.. okay we get it, pick a different terms... mixed it up a bit would ya! I liked Logan though so... I overlooked it.
Christians brother Brian... I'm actually surprised being as southern as his family is, it wasn't more of a problem with his family. Although I'm glad it wasn't and I wish someone would have laid Brian out!! I kinda wish he woulda got his karmatic a-s-s whoppin, I was disappointed he didn't, and I was disappointed that it ended so abrupt...Maybe in the next one we'll get to see more of them and how their relationship grows. It just seemed like right when we got to the good part, the book ended.
I loved how both families, aside from the bigot brother was so accepting of them and their relationship though. I wish more families were like that.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read. I liked it. It wasn't my fave, but it was definately good. Will most likely read the next one and hopefully get to see how their relationship progresses :)
3.5 stars for me :)
March 10, 2015
Oi! but this book was NOT what I expected it to be. Mind you, I sort of liked it but there were many things I had a problem with, which didn't help rating-wise. But mainly these:
-Too many POV changes. All abrupt, some unnecessary. I do not need to know how the main characters' mothers feel/think. I think it messed up with my flow up the story when I had to go back and re-read a passage to understand 'who' said what and why.
- Insufficient emotional turmoil. What drew me to this book was the blurb so I was expecting a bit more emotional conflict in regards to Christian's PTSD/attraction to Logan/spanking. Alas, there was some but I thought it was wrapped up too tidily for my linking.
- Logan's family. Yep, these people were too cheery, too involved. Just...nope.
I liked Christian and I firmly believe that he was cheated. His story was told up to a point, but I got the sense that I didn't get a lot from him emotion-wise. I thought he got over his reluctance to be in a relationship a bit too easily. I liked how conflicted he was in the beginning and the cautious way he went about being with Logan. But suddenly it was like his previous discomfort just didn't exist. Which I could have accepted if there were more than a few days between him meeting Logan and him being all accepting and stuff. Nonetheless, I liked him with Logan--russet skin and all. (Don't even!)
Logan was okay if a little too cheerful and perfect. However, he was caring and supportive which ultimately helped Christian overcome some of his issues.
I did think that the DD aspect of the story was brought to the page well. It was informative without being overwhelming on the reader, which I appreciated. I could have done without Logan discussing his parents' DD relationship---but to each its own.
Now about the spanking. Hey, I've read plenty of books with spanking in it, which I loved. But I admit this one left me a little uncomfortable. Mainly because it seemed to me that Christian came up with his spanking fetish out of the blue with only this as a clue as to his 'need'. . This is a man who was ready to give up in life, suffering from the pain of his injuries--call me crazy but I just I couldn't wrap my mind around it. Sorry.
Like I said, there were things I liked but many things I didn't. And the sad fact is that I already read the second book and I came away from it even more disappointed. *sigh* Cada cual con lo suyo!
-Too many POV changes. All abrupt, some unnecessary. I do not need to know how the main characters' mothers feel/think. I think it messed up with my flow up the story when I had to go back and re-read a passage to understand 'who' said what and why.
- Insufficient emotional turmoil. What drew me to this book was the blurb so I was expecting a bit more emotional conflict in regards to Christian's PTSD/attraction to Logan/spanking. Alas, there was some but I thought it was wrapped up too tidily for my linking.
- Logan's family. Yep, these people were too cheery, too involved. Just...nope.
I liked Christian and I firmly believe that he was cheated. His story was told up to a point, but I got the sense that I didn't get a lot from him emotion-wise. I thought he got over his reluctance to be in a relationship a bit too easily. I liked how conflicted he was in the beginning and the cautious way he went about being with Logan. But suddenly it was like his previous discomfort just didn't exist. Which I could have accepted if there were more than a few days between him meeting Logan and him being all accepting and stuff. Nonetheless, I liked him with Logan--russet skin and all. (Don't even!)
Logan was okay if a little too cheerful and perfect. However, he was caring and supportive which ultimately helped Christian overcome some of his issues.
I did think that the DD aspect of the story was brought to the page well. It was informative without being overwhelming on the reader, which I appreciated. I could have done without Logan discussing his parents' DD relationship---but to each its own.
Now about the spanking. Hey, I've read plenty of books with spanking in it, which I loved. But I admit this one left me a little uncomfortable. Mainly because it seemed to me that Christian came up with his spanking fetish out of the blue with only this as a clue as to his 'need'. . This is a man who was ready to give up in life, suffering from the pain of his injuries--call me crazy but I just I couldn't wrap my mind around it. Sorry.
Like I said, there were things I liked but many things I didn't. And the sad fact is that I already read the second book and I came away from it even more disappointed. *sigh* Cada cual con lo suyo!
May 31, 2015
I received and arc of this book for an honest review.
I really started out liking this book but lost interest about half way through. First let me say I loved Christian and Logan both but there were just some things in the book that did not flow.
Christian comes home from war a changed man attacked by his own men for defending a gay man. He is scarred and tormented by what happened to him. He meets Logan who is a fun loving and care free 21 year old. They hit it off right away and get along from the start. Which was the great part of the story. You see Christian open up and start to live. But that is also where I lose the story. It all goes down hill after that. Logan brings up his fetish for spanking. Not that I doubt a 21 can't be into that but Logan is a 21 year old gay man, comfortable in his own skin and into spanking all by the age of 21. It just does not seem possible. Then when Logan tells Christian he developed an interest in this because of his parents.....WHAT!!!! Really
a parent is going to discuss they spank their spouse with their 21 year old son. Not only that he puts the mom in time outs. REALLY. I just found that completely bizarre and it totally turned me off. Don't get me wrong it is awesome for a child to be able to talk openly with a parent but again by the time is 21 he has come out to his parents, they are totally ok with it and they discuss spanking..... WHAT. I read a lot of books that have much heavier subjects than this one did but I just could not get past that on a personal level. I also got to the end of the book and said what the heck. I did not realize this was the first book of a series so when I got to the end and there was no real end to the book I could not figure out what happened until I got on Goodreads the next day and saw this was the first book somewhere. I don't think I will continue on with this series. As much as I liked Logan and Christian the parent discussion just kind of turned me off. Sorry. I gave it 3 stars and not one or 2 because I did enjoy the first half of the book before the spanking became part of the story. That part could easily been left out and the story would have been much better to me.
I really started out liking this book but lost interest about half way through. First let me say I loved Christian and Logan both but there were just some things in the book that did not flow.
Christian comes home from war a changed man attacked by his own men for defending a gay man. He is scarred and tormented by what happened to him. He meets Logan who is a fun loving and care free 21 year old. They hit it off right away and get along from the start. Which was the great part of the story. You see Christian open up and start to live. But that is also where I lose the story. It all goes down hill after that. Logan brings up his fetish for spanking. Not that I doubt a 21 can't be into that but Logan is a 21 year old gay man, comfortable in his own skin and into spanking all by the age of 21. It just does not seem possible. Then when Logan tells Christian he developed an interest in this because of his parents.....WHAT!!!! Really
a parent is going to discuss they spank their spouse with their 21 year old son. Not only that he puts the mom in time outs. REALLY. I just found that completely bizarre and it totally turned me off. Don't get me wrong it is awesome for a child to be able to talk openly with a parent but again by the time is 21 he has come out to his parents, they are totally ok with it and they discuss spanking..... WHAT. I read a lot of books that have much heavier subjects than this one did but I just could not get past that on a personal level. I also got to the end of the book and said what the heck. I did not realize this was the first book of a series so when I got to the end and there was no real end to the book I could not figure out what happened until I got on Goodreads the next day and saw this was the first book somewhere. I don't think I will continue on with this series. As much as I liked Logan and Christian the parent discussion just kind of turned me off. Sorry. I gave it 3 stars and not one or 2 because I did enjoy the first half of the book before the spanking became part of the story. That part could easily been left out and the story would have been much better to me.
August 13, 2013
I have to be totally honest and say that previously if I saw a book classified under gay romance, I probably wouldn’t even give it a second glance, but this one caught my eye on the Saturday Spankings blog hop, and even from a few sentences, the characters really sucked me in. And I’m so glad they did as it was such an incredible read.
It’s a story of two wonderful men.
Christian is coming to terms with his disablement, a result of an injury while in military service for his country, injured for standing up for a gay man. He comes home from the war broken, physically and emotionally and questioning his own sexuality. His experiences of the bigotry he’s encountered for coming to the assistance of a gay man make it difficult for him to accept his feelings towards men, and to complicate things further, he does find women attractive also.
Logan is a funny, compassionate man at ease with his homosexuality. His family and friends love him and support him all the way. He’s looking for a committed relationship incorporating domestic discipline. The two meet and a friendship ensues. Christian struggles to come to terms with his feelings for Logan, who is patient and understanding. I watched and waited, begging Christian to just get on with it, Logan was too good to pass up! Happily Christian does see Logan’s finer points and the relationship blossoms.
I was totally hooked as Christian comes to terms with his sexuality, his initial fear of coming out, the bigotry he meets from his brother, the love and compassion he receives from Logan’s family, his ex-girlfriend and his parents. The emotions run high in this beautifully written book, and along with romance and doubts there is humour and a constant sense of reality, both good and bad . I can’t wait for the sequel because I now feel these men are my friends and I really want to see how they develop in their newfound love.
It’s a story of two wonderful men.
Christian is coming to terms with his disablement, a result of an injury while in military service for his country, injured for standing up for a gay man. He comes home from the war broken, physically and emotionally and questioning his own sexuality. His experiences of the bigotry he’s encountered for coming to the assistance of a gay man make it difficult for him to accept his feelings towards men, and to complicate things further, he does find women attractive also.
Logan is a funny, compassionate man at ease with his homosexuality. His family and friends love him and support him all the way. He’s looking for a committed relationship incorporating domestic discipline. The two meet and a friendship ensues. Christian struggles to come to terms with his feelings for Logan, who is patient and understanding. I watched and waited, begging Christian to just get on with it, Logan was too good to pass up! Happily Christian does see Logan’s finer points and the relationship blossoms.
I was totally hooked as Christian comes to terms with his sexuality, his initial fear of coming out, the bigotry he meets from his brother, the love and compassion he receives from Logan’s family, his ex-girlfriend and his parents. The emotions run high in this beautifully written book, and along with romance and doubts there is humour and a constant sense of reality, both good and bad . I can’t wait for the sequel because I now feel these men are my friends and I really want to see how they develop in their newfound love.
September 8, 2016
I really enjoyed this wonderful love story. I didn’t put it down until I was done. There’s little to no angst, don’t mistake that for no drama or tension there is that just not so much between Christian and Logan.
Christian is home after being injured, by his own men, serving over sea. Not only does he have the physical injury and PTSD to deal with, he has to face the fact that his own men tried to kill him for standing up for another. He’s at his lowest point when he meets Logan, a young man that can actually make him laugh. Christian has never been attracted to a man and the struggle and growth he goes through to accept it in himself and with Logan was at times difficult to read. But to see the love between the two grow was wonderful. Thianna really made me feel Christians conflicting emotions and fight to accept himself. It felt that just as Christian accepted his sexuality and comes out to his parents and closest friend, Kelli. Then his brother, Brian, shows up with all his sanctimonious crap. I really hate Brian and people like him that make all Christians look bad. I really wanted Christian to kick his ass.
I can’t say enough good about Logan. I just love him. He is funny; I had a grin most of the way through the book. He was patient, understanding and compassionate with Christian which was just what he needed. He may be the younger in the relationship, but with his experience he was the one in the lead, especially with the sexual aspects of the relationship. All I’ll say is that Logan can give a good spanking ;) The sexual tension and desire these two had for each other was palpable.
This first story ends with a very satisfying HFN. I’m looking forward to the continuation of Christian and Logan’s story in Took My Breath Away which is due out on Dec. 18, 2013.
(I received a copy from publisher for an honest review.)
Christian is home after being injured, by his own men, serving over sea. Not only does he have the physical injury and PTSD to deal with, he has to face the fact that his own men tried to kill him for standing up for another. He’s at his lowest point when he meets Logan, a young man that can actually make him laugh. Christian has never been attracted to a man and the struggle and growth he goes through to accept it in himself and with Logan was at times difficult to read. But to see the love between the two grow was wonderful. Thianna really made me feel Christians conflicting emotions and fight to accept himself. It felt that just as Christian accepted his sexuality and comes out to his parents and closest friend, Kelli. Then his brother, Brian, shows up with all his sanctimonious crap. I really hate Brian and people like him that make all Christians look bad. I really wanted Christian to kick his ass.
I can’t say enough good about Logan. I just love him. He is funny; I had a grin most of the way through the book. He was patient, understanding and compassionate with Christian which was just what he needed. He may be the younger in the relationship, but with his experience he was the one in the lead, especially with the sexual aspects of the relationship. All I’ll say is that Logan can give a good spanking ;) The sexual tension and desire these two had for each other was palpable.
This first story ends with a very satisfying HFN. I’m looking forward to the continuation of Christian and Logan’s story in Took My Breath Away which is due out on Dec. 18, 2013.
(I received a copy from publisher for an honest review.)
December 18, 2013
I received this book from net galley for an honest review.
This book didn't do for me. There was too much going on and none of it was done well. The variety of themes it tried to cover, from Domestic discipline, to PTSD, to OFY, was too much for one short book, and none of those topics were appropriately addressed or handled. It was mentioned, glazed over, move on to the next topic. This is my first encounter with DD as a concept separate from BDSM, and I must say I think its utterly ridiculous. Not the spanking, mind you, but that a husband would do this to his wife to discipline her? Really? And who disciplines the husband? But my opinion here has nothing to do with the subject matter per se, just the way it was written.
The PTSD part had a lot of promise and possibility for emotional connection. Christian's time at war should have been focused on more along with more details of the actual event, his hospital stay etc. There was a lot of room for me to truly feel for this character and what he's been through, and I felt nothing.
Now lets get to the writing. Bad, just bad. Has the author ever heard of contractions? Real people do not say things the way her characters do. They just don't! It drove me nuts. And I just hated all the parents involvement in the story. They were too vanilla, annoying and boring. And when the author started using their actual names, and stopped to describe their thoughts on things from their pov, it got very confusing. It didn't add anything to the actual story and should have been edited out.
The only thing I did like, which is why I gave an extra star, is I did feel a connection between Logan and Christian. I could feel how torn Christian was at being attracted to a man, and how turned on and excited he got by the things Logan wanted to do. So besides this nice little sexual charge they had, the book needs work. And a lot of it!
This book didn't do for me. There was too much going on and none of it was done well. The variety of themes it tried to cover, from Domestic discipline, to PTSD, to OFY, was too much for one short book, and none of those topics were appropriately addressed or handled. It was mentioned, glazed over, move on to the next topic. This is my first encounter with DD as a concept separate from BDSM, and I must say I think its utterly ridiculous. Not the spanking, mind you, but that a husband would do this to his wife to discipline her? Really? And who disciplines the husband? But my opinion here has nothing to do with the subject matter per se, just the way it was written.
The PTSD part had a lot of promise and possibility for emotional connection. Christian's time at war should have been focused on more along with more details of the actual event, his hospital stay etc. There was a lot of room for me to truly feel for this character and what he's been through, and I felt nothing.
Now lets get to the writing. Bad, just bad. Has the author ever heard of contractions? Real people do not say things the way her characters do. They just don't! It drove me nuts. And I just hated all the parents involvement in the story. They were too vanilla, annoying and boring. And when the author started using their actual names, and stopped to describe their thoughts on things from their pov, it got very confusing. It didn't add anything to the actual story and should have been edited out.
The only thing I did like, which is why I gave an extra star, is I did feel a connection between Logan and Christian. I could feel how torn Christian was at being attracted to a man, and how turned on and excited he got by the things Logan wanted to do. So besides this nice little sexual charge they had, the book needs work. And a lot of it!
May 12, 2015
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for a honest review
As Natural As Breathing is the first book in the All They Ever Needed trilogy, and I absolutely loved it. The two main characters were really endearing, I quickly fell in love with both of them. I found the writing style easy to read and I felt that the story flowed well. When I got to the end I was a little disappointed as the story felt unfinished, but I was happy again when I realised that Christian and Logan's story continues in two more books. I can't get enough of this couple, so I plan on reading the rest of their story in the near future.
Christian returns from war a totally different man from the one who left. A horrific friendly fire incident has left him with mental and physical scars. He is also trying to come to terms with his sexuality after discovering he is attracted to both men and women. He is depressed and rarely leaves the house until he meets a gorgeous ray of sunshine dressed as Santa. Logan (aka Santa) is instantly attracted to Christian and wants to put a smile back on his face. But can he cope with having a relationship with a man who is is the closet?
The interaction between Christian and Logan felt very natural and was fun to read. Logan was such a positive character, infact his whole family always seemed to be happy and his parents were great role models. Christian was so sweet, you couldn't help but feel for him after everything he'd been through. This book had some very hot moments, I really enjoyed the spanking scenes. They were more for mutual pleasure than for punishment, so it wasn't really a domestic discipline relationship (although it may develop into one in future books). Either way they were great to read!
I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for Logan and Christian. Five stars.
As Natural As Breathing is the first book in the All They Ever Needed trilogy, and I absolutely loved it. The two main characters were really endearing, I quickly fell in love with both of them. I found the writing style easy to read and I felt that the story flowed well. When I got to the end I was a little disappointed as the story felt unfinished, but I was happy again when I realised that Christian and Logan's story continues in two more books. I can't get enough of this couple, so I plan on reading the rest of their story in the near future.
Christian returns from war a totally different man from the one who left. A horrific friendly fire incident has left him with mental and physical scars. He is also trying to come to terms with his sexuality after discovering he is attracted to both men and women. He is depressed and rarely leaves the house until he meets a gorgeous ray of sunshine dressed as Santa. Logan (aka Santa) is instantly attracted to Christian and wants to put a smile back on his face. But can he cope with having a relationship with a man who is is the closet?
The interaction between Christian and Logan felt very natural and was fun to read. Logan was such a positive character, infact his whole family always seemed to be happy and his parents were great role models. Christian was so sweet, you couldn't help but feel for him after everything he'd been through. This book had some very hot moments, I really enjoyed the spanking scenes. They were more for mutual pleasure than for punishment, so it wasn't really a domestic discipline relationship (although it may develop into one in future books). Either way they were great to read!
I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for Logan and Christian. Five stars.
May 15, 2015
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review
Let me start with the cover. My goodness it is GORGEOUS! Vibrant colors, beautiful men, very attractive. Loved it.
Christian is a man who comes home from war with significant injuries and PTSD. He doesn't want to be around people and doesn't want to think about his "ruined" life. Logan is the son of a man who works with Christian's dad. When they meet, sparks fly and Christian finds himself laughing for the first time in a long time.
Christian's thoughts seemed to change quickly--one minute he is straight and wants to be left alone, then he is interested in Logan, then he decides he wants to be with Logan. At first it seemed too quick, but I actually appreciated the possibility that some people truly might not care what others think and just say "screw it! I'm going to do what I want". I was confused as to why Kelli and his family thought Christian was gay when he stated that he had found guys attractive, but never really thought past that. It really did seem new to Christian, yet everyone else wasn't surprised. I would've liked a little more development about that.
I really enjoyed this story! Christian and Logan were awesome together and I loved reading about them. The writing was great and had me sucked right into their story. I wanted more about their relationship after Logan went back to school, and with how they were going to make things work in the future. At first I was bummed because I just wanted MORE. then guess what?? I saw there are TWO MORE BOOKS!!! This makes for a happy reader!
(I edited this review to remove comments made regarding formatting. The formatting has been corrected and it looks AWESOME!!!!) :-)
Let me start with the cover. My goodness it is GORGEOUS! Vibrant colors, beautiful men, very attractive. Loved it.
Christian is a man who comes home from war with significant injuries and PTSD. He doesn't want to be around people and doesn't want to think about his "ruined" life. Logan is the son of a man who works with Christian's dad. When they meet, sparks fly and Christian finds himself laughing for the first time in a long time.
Christian's thoughts seemed to change quickly--one minute he is straight and wants to be left alone, then he is interested in Logan, then he decides he wants to be with Logan. At first it seemed too quick, but I actually appreciated the possibility that some people truly might not care what others think and just say "screw it! I'm going to do what I want". I was confused as to why Kelli and his family thought Christian was gay when he stated that he had found guys attractive, but never really thought past that. It really did seem new to Christian, yet everyone else wasn't surprised. I would've liked a little more development about that.
I really enjoyed this story! Christian and Logan were awesome together and I loved reading about them. The writing was great and had me sucked right into their story. I wanted more about their relationship after Logan went back to school, and with how they were going to make things work in the future. At first I was bummed because I just wanted MORE. then guess what?? I saw there are TWO MORE BOOKS!!! This makes for a happy reader!
(I edited this review to remove comments made regarding formatting. The formatting has been corrected and it looks AWESOME!!!!) :-)
May 8, 2015
This story is a very heart felt and sweet journey of two men who are totally opposites find themselves. Christian just got back from the war physically and mentally scarred. On the last day he was in the field a member of his own team threw a grenade at him when he was by his self. A week before he had openly protected a guy that was gay and so the rest of the homophobes were out to get him, Almost to the point of death. Several months later he goes home and feels that he was worthless to anyone, until he meets Logan at a Christmas party. Christian had broken up with his girlfriend and was confused as far as his sexuality was concerned. He knew he was attracted to some men, but he liked women too. Logan and Christian were immediately attracted to each other and the first kiss happened which confused Christian even more, but neither could get each other out of their minds. This was a good story of coming out of the closet for someone who was scared of what he was feeling and who he was. Logan was a gay man who was very confortable with his life, happy, and very supportive. The two together made a great couple as they went through this journey together. Characters were well developed and true to life. The story line was good.
May 4, 2015
I had read a few reviews of this book before starting reading and didn't hold out much hope due to the fact that they were all so bad.
But let me tell you these reviews are nothing like my opinion of this book. This is a new for me author and I must say I will be reading more.
Logan what a fun loving, kind, caring and mature character. Christian is a much deeper more internal character. But they seem to complement each other so well.
Christian has been through a lot to reach the point of meeting Logan. He has been to war and come back a different man in more ways than one and he has already had therapy for ptsd. But on meeting Logan and his family he finds a peace that he was unable to find when he first came home.
Not everything is good though the couple heave their problems. Not so much with each other but with a so called loving family.
This book had me laughing at times. Both moms were fantastic with their teasing and support. I was also feeling emotional at times with Christians struggles with his panic attacks.
I am happy to have read this book and am going to search out more from this writer.
*** I was given this book free for a honest review***
But let me tell you these reviews are nothing like my opinion of this book. This is a new for me author and I must say I will be reading more.
Logan what a fun loving, kind, caring and mature character. Christian is a much deeper more internal character. But they seem to complement each other so well.
Christian has been through a lot to reach the point of meeting Logan. He has been to war and come back a different man in more ways than one and he has already had therapy for ptsd. But on meeting Logan and his family he finds a peace that he was unable to find when he first came home.
Not everything is good though the couple heave their problems. Not so much with each other but with a so called loving family.
This book had me laughing at times. Both moms were fantastic with their teasing and support. I was also feeling emotional at times with Christians struggles with his panic attacks.
I am happy to have read this book and am going to search out more from this writer.
*** I was given this book free for a honest review***
May 10, 2015
I was given this book for free and asked to give an honest review
The starts out with a man who before he goes to war is happy and content with his life. On returning he is broken physically and in mind and spirit, punished for something he wasn't at the time.
This story has three issues it deals with, 1. am I gay gay. 2. dealing with family when the main character comes out to them and 3. how much kink will work in their relationship.
I liked the characters I loved the open communication between the MC's and their parents. The support given by those closest to them is a nice change to gay man ostracized from family.
My only complaint is it didn't seem finished. It doesn't leave you with a cliff hanger but there are several storylines that started and didn't finish.So I know that the author plans to continue with these characters and I look forward to see how this plays out.
The starts out with a man who before he goes to war is happy and content with his life. On returning he is broken physically and in mind and spirit, punished for something he wasn't at the time.
This story has three issues it deals with, 1. am I gay gay. 2. dealing with family when the main character comes out to them and 3. how much kink will work in their relationship.
I liked the characters I loved the open communication between the MC's and their parents. The support given by those closest to them is a nice change to gay man ostracized from family.
My only complaint is it didn't seem finished. It doesn't leave you with a cliff hanger but there are several storylines that started and didn't finish.So I know that the author plans to continue with these characters and I look forward to see how this plays out.
September 11, 2016
As natural as breathing is not only a wonderful coming out story, between a PTSD veteran and a full of life college student, but a heartwarming love story. Thiana D’s characters are well thought out and make this plot come to life. Not only are Christian and Logan made real but her supporting cast is as well. The Domestic Discipline (DD) aspect is explained well for the reader who has never heard of this type of BDSM lifestyle before and is woven into the story in such a way that it just works.
May 4, 2015
DNF
Let's just start with the formatting...it's awful, along with the spelling and grammar.
The writing is awkward, amateurish and difficult to follow with lots of confusing POV changes.
People really don't speak the way the author writes.
Can you say contractions???
I didn't particularly like any of the characters and the sex was awkward, boring, tame and very one sided.
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review.
Let's just start with the formatting...it's awful, along with the spelling and grammar.
The writing is awkward, amateurish and difficult to follow with lots of confusing POV changes.
People really don't speak the way the author writes.
Can you say contractions???
I didn't particularly like any of the characters and the sex was awkward, boring, tame and very one sided.
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review.
May 28, 2015
This is a feel good type of book where everything goes fairly smoothly for the MC and the problems are easily solved. There are lots of warm fuzzy moments with some dashes of kink. What I really liked about it was the characters and the slow build of their relationship together. They were likable and way too often books don't spend alot of time with the character doing stuff together and finding out about each other like this book does.
May 14, 2015
Truly enjoyed this book! I loved how the relationship developed between Logan and Christian. I like the backstory that Christian was injured in the military and came home to heal. Some books focus too much on the injury and not the budding relationship, but this one got it right.
This is the first book I have read about a DD relationship. Very insightful and interesting to read.
This is the first book I have read about a DD relationship. Very insightful and interesting to read.
May 5, 2015
I enjoyed this story. The coming out of christian was good but felt it was alittle too fast. At times I didnt understand all the talk of spanking, I feel it could have been handled different. Logan is a great character. I am rooting for this too but at the end I wanted more of their story. I see now that there is a book 2.
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