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The Residency Boys #1
Collin: Episodes 1-3
“I think we’re a little early in this relationship for you to be using ‘sir’ this often, though I must admit, I like the sound of the title on your lips, Collin.” Mr. Reevesworth smiled a little. “Have you eaten?”
Twenty-four year old Collin is a non-traditional college student. Three jobs and a full load of classes have his back against the wall. When he walks into the internship interview, all he’s hoping for is experience and avoiding anything embarrassing, like buying a coffee he can’t afford. But the tall and unnerving Mr. Reevesworth of Reevesworth Industries seems to know more about him than any potential employer should.
Mr. Reevesworth is using words like “submission”, “pretty”, “intelligent”, and “trainable”. The ring on his finger says he’s married but he’s making no attempt to hide the fact that he’s decided Collin should be his. But before he makes the offer Collin is almost sure he can’t afford to refuse, he gives Collin a card, and an invitation to learn as much about him and his world as he knows about Collin. If he dares…
Join Collin as he plunges into a world of kink, consensual non-monogamy, chosen family, and the inner workings of a company that intends to make the world a better place, even if they have to walk through their own and others’ darkness first, to make it happen.
This series is a modern MMM+ BDSM billionaire romance. Intended for mature audiences only. If you like your romance kinky and spicy, then this story is for you. See inside for additional tags and tw’s.
Twenty-four year old Collin is a non-traditional college student. Three jobs and a full load of classes have his back against the wall. When he walks into the internship interview, all he’s hoping for is experience and avoiding anything embarrassing, like buying a coffee he can’t afford. But the tall and unnerving Mr. Reevesworth of Reevesworth Industries seems to know more about him than any potential employer should.
Mr. Reevesworth is using words like “submission”, “pretty”, “intelligent”, and “trainable”. The ring on his finger says he’s married but he’s making no attempt to hide the fact that he’s decided Collin should be his. But before he makes the offer Collin is almost sure he can’t afford to refuse, he gives Collin a card, and an invitation to learn as much about him and his world as he knows about Collin. If he dares…
Join Collin as he plunges into a world of kink, consensual non-monogamy, chosen family, and the inner workings of a company that intends to make the world a better place, even if they have to walk through their own and others’ darkness first, to make it happen.
This series is a modern MMM+ BDSM billionaire romance. Intended for mature audiences only. If you like your romance kinky and spicy, then this story is for you. See inside for additional tags and tw’s.
246 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 15, 2023
44 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
Ciara Darren
15 books30 followersCiara Darren was born under the shadow of the savage grandeur of the Cuyamaca Mountains where she trod on rattlesnakes and heard a tarantula cry. Seeking a better life, her parents moved her family into the mountains where they lived in a house of stone, with a giant fireplace, frigid winters, boiling summers, floods, fires, mountain lions, bobcats, and centipedes. Her protector was a lion named Aslan who shapeshifted as a massive chow mutt and frightened reprobate strangers with his fangs. She grew up on tales of angels and demons. Now she tells stories painted with those colors and tempered in the kiln of her years and travel since.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 22, 2023
"Something that has been trained out of you is what I must train into you... You and I together, we are going to break your hesitation to ask for help."
I… wow… I’m a bit speechless.
That was wonderful. I think I’ve found one of my favourite books of the year, if not a top contender for one of my favourite books of all time.
Collin is the first book I have ever read from Ciara Darren, and I loved every second of it. The episodic serial follows Collin, a young college student desperately trying to make ends meet by working two jobs and renting a cupboard to sleep in, while he finishes his degree. He's sought out by the wealthy and powerful Mr Reevesworth, who makes Collin and offer that is almost too good to be true and almost too good to turn down.
One night, while an exhausted and malnourished Collin is working for Mr Reevesworth's sister, an accident occurs that sends hims straight into the arms and the home of Richard Reevesworth himself.
Collin was a wonderful character; so beaten down by the shit hand life has thrown at him, but so determined to make something of himself. He pushes and pushes and pushes himself to please his mother until there's nothing left of him to give. I just... I felt so acutely what Collin felt. He was missing out on so many moments in life that should be joyous for a twenty-four year old and it broke my heart to watch him struggle when so much seemed to be resting on his back.
I felt an overwhelming sense of relief when Collin gave himself over to Richard; when he finally let himself be taken care of and allowed himself to dream the way he hadn't in years.
"He had nothing to lose. And potentially everything to gain. Damian might have said this road would cost him his pride, but Collin's pride was somewhere below the streets in the gutter anyway."
Damian was instrumental in the choice Collin made to surrender to Mr Reevesworth. Seeing how the young lawyer had flourished under the care and guidance of Reevesworth and Moreau made Collin long for something more in his life. And something more he got. He found himself at the attention of Damian and his gentle honesty on more than one occasion, and, incidentally, at the attention of Damian's skilful lips and hands too.
I loved the way they interacted together; it was so nice to see Collin taken under the wing of someone who had been in a similar position to himself at one point, and their easy conversation and the way they effortlessly slipped into heated moments together was great. Of course, being owned by Richard Reevesworth and his husband, their playtimes were controlled and orchestrated more for the purpose of getting to know each other than for just a quick f*ck.
And god, I can't tell you how much I love Richard Reevesworth and Emeric Moreau. They were so in sync, so in tune with each others needs and wants, and the way they pushed for each others success and achievements was truly beautiful. Though both Damian and Collin are Richard's boys, Emeric and Richard work in tandem to create a home and a safe haven for them, somewhere they can both put roots down and grow to reach their full potential. Their open marriage and comfortable polyamorous lifestyle is exactly what I want in my life.
I adored their vision for the future and their determination to change not only the lives of the boys they bring into their home, but the future as well. Their sustainable projects and vision for the future was amazing, and something I wish all people who achieve millionaire or billionaire status in their lifetime would strive for. It really lent a huge sense of importance to the story.
I'm so excited to see where episodes 4-6 take the four of them and I can't wait to read more of Collin's story. He deserves all the love, care, and happiness in the world and I know Ciara will give it to him.
TW: Self harm
I… wow… I’m a bit speechless.
That was wonderful. I think I’ve found one of my favourite books of the year, if not a top contender for one of my favourite books of all time.
Collin is the first book I have ever read from Ciara Darren, and I loved every second of it. The episodic serial follows Collin, a young college student desperately trying to make ends meet by working two jobs and renting a cupboard to sleep in, while he finishes his degree. He's sought out by the wealthy and powerful Mr Reevesworth, who makes Collin and offer that is almost too good to be true and almost too good to turn down.
One night, while an exhausted and malnourished Collin is working for Mr Reevesworth's sister, an accident occurs that sends hims straight into the arms and the home of Richard Reevesworth himself.
Collin was a wonderful character; so beaten down by the shit hand life has thrown at him, but so determined to make something of himself. He pushes and pushes and pushes himself to please his mother until there's nothing left of him to give. I just... I felt so acutely what Collin felt. He was missing out on so many moments in life that should be joyous for a twenty-four year old and it broke my heart to watch him struggle when so much seemed to be resting on his back.
I felt an overwhelming sense of relief when Collin gave himself over to Richard; when he finally let himself be taken care of and allowed himself to dream the way he hadn't in years.
"He had nothing to lose. And potentially everything to gain. Damian might have said this road would cost him his pride, but Collin's pride was somewhere below the streets in the gutter anyway."
Damian was instrumental in the choice Collin made to surrender to Mr Reevesworth. Seeing how the young lawyer had flourished under the care and guidance of Reevesworth and Moreau made Collin long for something more in his life. And something more he got. He found himself at the attention of Damian and his gentle honesty on more than one occasion, and, incidentally, at the attention of Damian's skilful lips and hands too.
I loved the way they interacted together; it was so nice to see Collin taken under the wing of someone who had been in a similar position to himself at one point, and their easy conversation and the way they effortlessly slipped into heated moments together was great. Of course, being owned by Richard Reevesworth and his husband, their playtimes were controlled and orchestrated more for the purpose of getting to know each other than for just a quick f*ck.
And god, I can't tell you how much I love Richard Reevesworth and Emeric Moreau. They were so in sync, so in tune with each others needs and wants, and the way they pushed for each others success and achievements was truly beautiful. Though both Damian and Collin are Richard's boys, Emeric and Richard work in tandem to create a home and a safe haven for them, somewhere they can both put roots down and grow to reach their full potential. Their open marriage and comfortable polyamorous lifestyle is exactly what I want in my life.
I adored their vision for the future and their determination to change not only the lives of the boys they bring into their home, but the future as well. Their sustainable projects and vision for the future was amazing, and something I wish all people who achieve millionaire or billionaire status in their lifetime would strive for. It really lent a huge sense of importance to the story.
I'm so excited to see where episodes 4-6 take the four of them and I can't wait to read more of Collin's story. He deserves all the love, care, and happiness in the world and I know Ciara will give it to him.
TW: Self harm
December 30, 2023
When most readers find this serial, the repetition of Woow, will be staggering!
Without a doubt these are some of the fastest 5 stars I've ever given this year for a book. Zero hesitation or time for doubts! If it were possible, I'd double them because polyamory combined with D/S dynamics is one of my favourites. What made it even more satisfying was the excellent execution of the plot and the interesting, well-developed characters. There were 3 focal points in the story, which seamlessly and beautifully merged together in one plot line.
First one as the title says is the heart and pulse of the story - Collin – one mesmerizing, beautiful mess of personality, hiding incredible depth and intriguing details, under the calm, quiet, observing facade of a man who had to grow shockingly fast and who has seen too much a child should had ever had to see, to be able to take care not only about himself, but the members of his family – mother and sister. When I met him while reading, he was already silently fracturing under the impossible load of all of his commitments and obligations – taking a full schedule of college classes and navigating a complicated chain of 2 or 3 part time jobs, living in a miserable dump off campus and slowly drowning financially. I was impressed how collected, resilient and tenacious this little human was – smart, stubborn, driven, meeting every new challenge with his head held high while objectively observing the impossibility to keep going with the punishing rhythm he was trying to keep. But what made me admire and respect his personality was the fact that he knew not only to take every beating life gave him, but when to admit defeat.
Second focal point – Richard Reevesworth- another fascinating force of nature – the centre of the Reevesworth household and one of the leading wheels behind the success of the Reevesworth financial empire who has already learned the most important lesson that success requires not running yourself into the ground, but delegating responsibilities, balancing the risks and building up trustworthy relationships. So he was nurturing the unique D/S bonds in his close family, finding people like Collin and giving the chance to their brilliant minds to flourish, grow and reach the potential of their capacity. Richard met Collin in a crucial but not entirely accidental moment, just a little bit earlier than his careful plans of research and observation were leading. A moment when Collin’s house of cards was already folding in itself, crumbling to pieces under the enormous pressure of everyone’s and his own expectations and impossible goals – the requirements of his scholarship, the college exam deadlines, his mother’s draconian social expectations, the responsibility of keeping her sister in school backing up her financial needs and his own minimum to survive. And everything was coming down because there was only so much he could endure. I felt like the Universe held its breath in this life changing moment. A key factor was Richard’s main submissive Damian – an excellent example of man who flourished under Reevesworth’s expert care and guidance, reaching the peak of his potential and being able to command a room with his mere presence. All wonderful achievements in Collin’s opinion.
So while the first focal point was about the tangled past and present of Collin’s life, the second was the bridge and the peek into Richard’s polyamorous lifestyle when Collin cautiously started to learn, navigate and understand the intricacies of such kind of life, the diversity of flavours of all relationships connected together by complicated lines of dominance and submission, respect and absolute trust, while keeping intact all personal boundaries in this fascinating world of kink. This was a pivotal moment in Collin’s life, who was taught all his life that the only valid option was to stay on his own 2 feet and never ask for help even when drowning. For Collin, this new situation was a blind, intense leap of faith without a guarantee of a safe landing, relying only on Richard’s word, the word of literal stranger that he will be taken care of.
The third focal point, the final and so important thread was Collin signing up the contract of being Richard’s submissive and entering a lifestyle he knew nothing about. It was a thrilling experience to read about these first steps of his training. They were so profoundly grounding and giving peace to his overloaded mind, freeing in their tantalising simplicity and clarity and also eye opening for someone like Collin who has never relinquished control over his life to someone else.
And the heat...The heat was enough to lit up a 3day's long bonfire – the erotic undertones were undeniably provoking, sensual and amazingly hot.
Without a doubt these are some of the fastest 5 stars I've ever given this year for a book. Zero hesitation or time for doubts! If it were possible, I'd double them because polyamory combined with D/S dynamics is one of my favourites. What made it even more satisfying was the excellent execution of the plot and the interesting, well-developed characters. There were 3 focal points in the story, which seamlessly and beautifully merged together in one plot line.
First one as the title says is the heart and pulse of the story - Collin – one mesmerizing, beautiful mess of personality, hiding incredible depth and intriguing details, under the calm, quiet, observing facade of a man who had to grow shockingly fast and who has seen too much a child should had ever had to see, to be able to take care not only about himself, but the members of his family – mother and sister. When I met him while reading, he was already silently fracturing under the impossible load of all of his commitments and obligations – taking a full schedule of college classes and navigating a complicated chain of 2 or 3 part time jobs, living in a miserable dump off campus and slowly drowning financially. I was impressed how collected, resilient and tenacious this little human was – smart, stubborn, driven, meeting every new challenge with his head held high while objectively observing the impossibility to keep going with the punishing rhythm he was trying to keep. But what made me admire and respect his personality was the fact that he knew not only to take every beating life gave him, but when to admit defeat.
Second focal point – Richard Reevesworth- another fascinating force of nature – the centre of the Reevesworth household and one of the leading wheels behind the success of the Reevesworth financial empire who has already learned the most important lesson that success requires not running yourself into the ground, but delegating responsibilities, balancing the risks and building up trustworthy relationships. So he was nurturing the unique D/S bonds in his close family, finding people like Collin and giving the chance to their brilliant minds to flourish, grow and reach the potential of their capacity. Richard met Collin in a crucial but not entirely accidental moment, just a little bit earlier than his careful plans of research and observation were leading. A moment when Collin’s house of cards was already folding in itself, crumbling to pieces under the enormous pressure of everyone’s and his own expectations and impossible goals – the requirements of his scholarship, the college exam deadlines, his mother’s draconian social expectations, the responsibility of keeping her sister in school backing up her financial needs and his own minimum to survive. And everything was coming down because there was only so much he could endure. I felt like the Universe held its breath in this life changing moment. A key factor was Richard’s main submissive Damian – an excellent example of man who flourished under Reevesworth’s expert care and guidance, reaching the peak of his potential and being able to command a room with his mere presence. All wonderful achievements in Collin’s opinion.
So while the first focal point was about the tangled past and present of Collin’s life, the second was the bridge and the peek into Richard’s polyamorous lifestyle when Collin cautiously started to learn, navigate and understand the intricacies of such kind of life, the diversity of flavours of all relationships connected together by complicated lines of dominance and submission, respect and absolute trust, while keeping intact all personal boundaries in this fascinating world of kink. This was a pivotal moment in Collin’s life, who was taught all his life that the only valid option was to stay on his own 2 feet and never ask for help even when drowning. For Collin, this new situation was a blind, intense leap of faith without a guarantee of a safe landing, relying only on Richard’s word, the word of literal stranger that he will be taken care of.
The third focal point, the final and so important thread was Collin signing up the contract of being Richard’s submissive and entering a lifestyle he knew nothing about. It was a thrilling experience to read about these first steps of his training. They were so profoundly grounding and giving peace to his overloaded mind, freeing in their tantalising simplicity and clarity and also eye opening for someone like Collin who has never relinquished control over his life to someone else.
And the heat...The heat was enough to lit up a 3day's long bonfire – the erotic undertones were undeniably provoking, sensual and amazingly hot.
January 2, 2026
Could he find on his knees what he could not find on his feet? Colin, A struggling college student enters a complex world of BDSM and polyamory when a married billionaire employer shows interest in him personally as well as in training him.
This is a 3-book series that CANNOT be read out of order. It's also a series that the reader can't in any way, be bothered by any aspect of the kink world or BDSM.
We first meet Collin; a 24-year-old college student who is working three jobs while attending college... and entirely supporting himself. He's also sending money home to his mother and sister. He has an interview for an internship at "Reedsworth Industries" and he soon finds that Mr. Reedswoth has become very, very interested in him and hires him to be his personal assistant. Not only does he start to build trust and friendship, but also, he slowly starts to introduce Collin to the lifestyle of BDSM.
It's hard to say much about the story without giving too much away. So, I will just say that thus far it has been very interesting and a really good book. We can see Collin changing and becoming more than accepting of the change that Mr. Reedsworth is making in him. It surprised me that it happened so early in the story. especially when Collin had had so little knowledge and no previous experience with any aspect of the kink world...but you have to love and admire the trust that Mr. Reedsworth displayed. I also was really "put-off" by Collin's mother. I think we are going to learn more about her in book 2.
I had a bit of trouble rating this book. I decided on 4.5 stars...not that I didn't absolutely enjoy every aspect of it, but I kept feeling that Collin's acceptance and immersion into the kink lifestyle happened maybe a bit too fast...however there are two more full-length books, and I can't wait to see the "new and improved" Collin as he takes this journey. Ciara Darren is a new author to me, and I am looking forward to reading more of her books, other than these three.
Just a side note...I don't know how much editors make, but whoever was supposed to be responsible for editing this book, should not have ever been paid for it, because it was almost nonexistent. I can't imagine that a publisher just wouldn't care how an author's work comes out to people that buy and read their product.
This is a 3-book series that CANNOT be read out of order. It's also a series that the reader can't in any way, be bothered by any aspect of the kink world or BDSM.
We first meet Collin; a 24-year-old college student who is working three jobs while attending college... and entirely supporting himself. He's also sending money home to his mother and sister. He has an interview for an internship at "Reedsworth Industries" and he soon finds that Mr. Reedswoth has become very, very interested in him and hires him to be his personal assistant. Not only does he start to build trust and friendship, but also, he slowly starts to introduce Collin to the lifestyle of BDSM.
It's hard to say much about the story without giving too much away. So, I will just say that thus far it has been very interesting and a really good book. We can see Collin changing and becoming more than accepting of the change that Mr. Reedsworth is making in him. It surprised me that it happened so early in the story. especially when Collin had had so little knowledge and no previous experience with any aspect of the kink world...but you have to love and admire the trust that Mr. Reedsworth displayed. I also was really "put-off" by Collin's mother. I think we are going to learn more about her in book 2.
I had a bit of trouble rating this book. I decided on 4.5 stars...not that I didn't absolutely enjoy every aspect of it, but I kept feeling that Collin's acceptance and immersion into the kink lifestyle happened maybe a bit too fast...however there are two more full-length books, and I can't wait to see the "new and improved" Collin as he takes this journey. Ciara Darren is a new author to me, and I am looking forward to reading more of her books, other than these three.
Just a side note...I don't know how much editors make, but whoever was supposed to be responsible for editing this book, should not have ever been paid for it, because it was almost nonexistent. I can't imagine that a publisher just wouldn't care how an author's work comes out to people that buy and read their product.
December 14, 2023
4.75* this was an amazing D/s read! with poly-romance.
The hurt/comfort was scrumptious. There's lots of build up that is just done right. This is a character driven book though the plot move too. The focus on Collin and his Dom was also great to see - the attention, lessons, interactions, communication.
It's quite a slow burn, there's not a really penetrative scene with the MC yet, though it'll come in the next episodes (and I think it's gonna be fire because all the edging was amazing). And I like how Reevesworth shows affection to Collin (as well as others!).
The only character I did not really like was Damian. He felt pushy, sometimes a bit creepy, and just like an instrument in the book. (Only reason for not giving this 5*) I'm hoping he'll develop somehow to be a more likeable character.
Moreau gets more attention in the last third of the book and I'm interested to see him more as he's really intriguing and enigmatic. Don't know where to place him yet, in relation to Collins. But that was not a problem. He felt like an unimportant character until he didn't. His importance is shown near the end and I was just wowed. The narrative is really well constructed.
Overall I loved the plotline, the family issues, the self harm, the depression, the navigation in a polyrelationship (it is from the "novice" perspective so it is well shown and explained). I thought it's been a really well done story, along with the D/s aspect.
The hurt/comfort was scrumptious. There's lots of build up that is just done right. This is a character driven book though the plot move too. The focus on Collin and his Dom was also great to see - the attention, lessons, interactions, communication.
It's quite a slow burn, there's not a really penetrative scene with the MC yet, though it'll come in the next episodes (and I think it's gonna be fire because all the edging was amazing). And I like how Reevesworth shows affection to Collin (as well as others!).
The only character I did not really like was Damian. He felt pushy, sometimes a bit creepy, and just like an instrument in the book. (Only reason for not giving this 5*) I'm hoping he'll develop somehow to be a more likeable character.
Moreau gets more attention in the last third of the book and I'm interested to see him more as he's really intriguing and enigmatic. Don't know where to place him yet, in relation to Collins. But that was not a problem. He felt like an unimportant character until he didn't. His importance is shown near the end and I was just wowed. The narrative is really well constructed.
Overall I loved the plotline, the family issues, the self harm, the depression, the navigation in a polyrelationship (it is from the "novice" perspective so it is well shown and explained). I thought it's been a really well done story, along with the D/s aspect.
June 4, 2024
2.5 stars rounded down because good God does this need an editor--there are mixed homonyms, misunderstood idioms, straight-up dropped words and incorrect spellings, missing punctuation. It took some doing for me not to red-pen the crickets out of this, which is unfortunate because it distracts so much from the story.
And story there is, which is surprising. It'd be easy to think this is just MMM(M) porn all the time but there's actually a decent amount of setup in who everyone is, what the understanding between Collin and Mr. Reevesworth is, how Collin is getting crushed by the world/capitalism. (Mostly capitalism.) There's also a decent amount of setup for where this story can grow; there are plenty of hints about Collin having some Past Drama, about Damien becoming a weird dynamic, and about Mr. Moreau being...something.
And the cliffhanger ending informs us that the mother is a problem. I deeply dislike her, which I think I'm supposed to. Lots of biases there but also Darren writes a mostly convincing character who says she loves her kids but really only loves the ideas she has for them and boy oh boy if that isn't felt by a lot of us....(srsly that can't be just me c'mon).
This is one of the few books I've read where I met a lot of kinks that are decidedly not mine but cared enough about the story to work with that. The main one is which just grosses me out and also feels deeply invasive, but that's an "I won't yuck your yum" kind of thing because Darren actually does a lot of narrative and dialogic work to show why this thing is part of the dynamic. Actually, Darren does a lot of work in general to set up the D/s relationship and I am deeply in love with this language from the foreword: "If someone is pressuring you into using worshipful or highly respectful titles that you're not comfortable with, or demanding capitalizations that you don't feel they've earned, speak up and negotiate. If that's not an option, please find a way to leave. That is not mutually respectful kink. Respect goes both ways" (l. 55). And this, too: "Just because someone declares themselves a dom [sic] does not make them one, nor are they entitled by their declaration of preferred dominance to anyone else's deference...There are lots of tops out there cosplaying as doms [sic], and plenty of bullies trying to be wolves in sheep's clothing" (l. 57, 59). YES YES YES THIS and that gets echoed through the story itself as Mr. Reevesworth says that this is what he is and is not willing to take on as a Dom because this and this are what that position means. I am always here for kink done with an actual understanding of the relational trust underneath rather than "lolz sexy whip."
There are plenty of times where a character (mostly Mr. Reevesworth) has a speech in which he opens his mouth and Ciara Darren comes out, but that happens and there isn't anything terribly egregious. And this is, at heart, a completely absurd Cinderella tale of a white dude getting scooped up/saved/sexed by another white dude (two Black men exist in this but I'm withholding review on how they're portrayed until we get further into the series; so far, I'm wary). But if you start with the awareness of that, this is a pretty intriguing ride.
But for the love of the Holy hire an editor. Please.
And story there is, which is surprising. It'd be easy to think this is just MMM(M) porn all the time but there's actually a decent amount of setup in who everyone is, what the understanding between Collin and Mr. Reevesworth is, how Collin is getting crushed by the world/capitalism. (Mostly capitalism.) There's also a decent amount of setup for where this story can grow; there are plenty of hints about Collin having some Past Drama, about Damien becoming a weird dynamic, and about Mr. Moreau being...something.
And the cliffhanger ending informs us that the mother is a problem. I deeply dislike her, which I think I'm supposed to. Lots of biases there but also Darren writes a mostly convincing character who says she loves her kids but really only loves the ideas she has for them and boy oh boy if that isn't felt by a lot of us....(srsly that can't be just me c'mon).
This is one of the few books I've read where I met a lot of kinks that are decidedly not mine but cared enough about the story to work with that. The main one is which just grosses me out and also feels deeply invasive, but that's an "I won't yuck your yum" kind of thing because Darren actually does a lot of narrative and dialogic work to show why this thing is part of the dynamic. Actually, Darren does a lot of work in general to set up the D/s relationship and I am deeply in love with this language from the foreword: "If someone is pressuring you into using worshipful or highly respectful titles that you're not comfortable with, or demanding capitalizations that you don't feel they've earned, speak up and negotiate. If that's not an option, please find a way to leave. That is not mutually respectful kink. Respect goes both ways" (l. 55). And this, too: "Just because someone declares themselves a dom [sic] does not make them one, nor are they entitled by their declaration of preferred dominance to anyone else's deference...There are lots of tops out there cosplaying as doms [sic], and plenty of bullies trying to be wolves in sheep's clothing" (l. 57, 59). YES YES YES THIS and that gets echoed through the story itself as Mr. Reevesworth says that this is what he is and is not willing to take on as a Dom because this and this are what that position means. I am always here for kink done with an actual understanding of the relational trust underneath rather than "lolz sexy whip."
There are plenty of times where a character (mostly Mr. Reevesworth) has a speech in which he opens his mouth and Ciara Darren comes out, but that happens and there isn't anything terribly egregious. And this is, at heart, a completely absurd Cinderella tale of a white dude getting scooped up/saved/sexed by another white dude (two Black men exist in this but I'm withholding review on how they're portrayed until we get further into the series; so far, I'm wary). But if you start with the awareness of that, this is a pretty intriguing ride.
But for the love of the Holy hire an editor. Please.
April 24, 2024
Well written, giving a good idea of the way the multiple MC's negotiate their emerging relationship and their Dom/sub status. Interesting for someone who wants to learn about the motivations and the ins and outs of Dom/sub relationships and BDSM. The story deserves 4 stars.
However, sadly this book is badly in need of editing, spell checking, grammar checking. Wrong words were used that closely resemble the correct word, but are not the right word and just do not fit or don't make sense. Some words are missing altogether. I took 1 star off for that.
However, sadly this book is badly in need of editing, spell checking, grammar checking. Wrong words were used that closely resemble the correct word, but are not the right word and just do not fit or don't make sense. Some words are missing altogether. I took 1 star off for that.
November 25, 2025
3.5! A good Dom/sub poly MM novella
November 11, 2024
Dfn @ 26%
April 29, 2024
After finishing the series and finding out how truly awful it got, I'm downgrading the stars. What a lost opportunity for characters I really liked in this book.
I'm being generous, there hasn't been any kind of editing or even a reread done on this. I'm guessing this was written on AO3 or something, and it was just ported over. That's completely unacceptable. But I really loved the characters and the story, so I'm upgrading the 3-31/2 stars to four. If there'd been even cursory editing, this could have been a five-star read. I'm giving it the stars because the representation seems that good as well. But I am continuing with the series, it really should be edited, respect your readers.
I'm being generous, there hasn't been any kind of editing or even a reread done on this. I'm guessing this was written on AO3 or something, and it was just ported over. That's completely unacceptable. But I really loved the characters and the story, so I'm upgrading the 3-31/2 stars to four. If there'd been even cursory editing, this could have been a five-star read. I'm giving it the stars because the representation seems that good as well. But I am continuing with the series, it really should be edited, respect your readers.
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