*Warning: May contain spoilers. 18+ read*
Let me start off by saying I am SO OVER these kinds of books pushing women (back) into submission. I took one look at the cover, literally rolled my eyes and said "Just shut up" a la that blonde in the movie Mean Girls. I like BDSM in the bedroom, sometimes in a club/dungeon environment if you're role playing with a partner. I don't want to "own" anyone else, either. My self esteem isn't that low. Sure, I like some spice in the bedroom and I don't mind switching. But you try to be my "master" outside of the bedroom or in public I'll knock you into the middle of next week. I'm not a submissive woman and I don't like reading about submissive women, either. I've said it before, If I ever do want to I'll browse the history section of the library - where books like this belong. I don't kneel. Never have. Never will. I'm a redhead. We handle you...IF you're lucky ;)
However, I was assured by the author's damn good PA that this isn't entirely what it sounds like, and there's actually some variety. I also said to myself, "Self, it is the mark of an educated mind to entertain a thought without necessarily accepting it." Naturally I agreed with myself. Then I scolded myself, because I'm obviously insane to keep reading the same stuff and expecting a different result...
Dominant man Charles Damien Macavoy is asked by his best friend and fellow Dom, Jason, to train his girlfriend. Apparently she's not obedient enough. Could it be that perhaps she's living in the 21st century where women have rights and that gosh darn 13th Amendment prohibits slavery?
Of course, he was raised in a home where his father's word was law and "God forbid" *coughsarcasm* that his mother not be obedient. See why books like this are bad for women? The more people read this kind of thing the more they're trained - literally - into thinking like this. Love does not mean obedience. Details...
The guy likes a challenge, particularly headstrong women who refuse to submit to any man...could you BE more egotistical?! Hey, Charlie guess what? That IS a caveman mentality. Women aren't property. We're human beings. No cock - 12" or not - is worth giving up your life. (And really...12"?? Sure, OK, whatever...) His father's words "To be a man, you need to command respect from your peers and from the women around you." Well, Charles I guess you're not a man then, because I do not respect you and your archaic sensibilities.
Nor do I respect that only ONCE did Charles ever wear a condom. If safe is part of the BDSM motto (safe, sane, consensual) then the sex needed to be safer! Also, every club I've ever been to didn't sell alcohol or permit you to bring your own. One drink is OK to take off the edge, but when I read "the drinks will be abundant" I was appalled. One cannot have his or her wits about them when they have consumed alcohol...
Charles's "pet" and submissive, Tasha is the kind of woman I loved and hated at the same time. She spent all of her money (from hooking) and basically starves herself just to look good, just to get the Dom everyone wanted, just to prove a point. If you like sex, fine, but stop using/abusing your body to get what you want. And stop using men as an ATM! This is where women's liberation went wrong. Make your own money and support yourself! Sure it works fine when you're "in your prime" at 26, but what happens when you're 46? 56? What happens when a man dumps you for someone half your age, simply because he can? With no money, no skills (b/c you didn't work your whole life as a result of submitting and giving up everything), what will you do then. Go on welfare just to get by? Hope someone helps you or if you're with someone, pray they don't leave you? Congratulations- now you're a pariah. Great. Way to ruin it for the rest of us...
Turned on by a neighbor because she's a strong woman with a career, he seduces her and loves that he finally gets to own a woman, "she'd submit, then trust, then love". Ha! Yeah, then lose her identity, independence, sense of self while he sticks it in anyone he wants...aaaaand we're back to the medieval ages. I mean there's a woman that has no problem just giving up control to someone she barely knows.What?? Hey dumb ass, why don't you just give up your right to vote while you're at it? I'm sick of hearing it takes a strong will to submit (particularly from men). Throw caution to the wind? Really Charles? YOU throw caution to the wind. YOU be "strong" and submit, then I'll be impressed.
Know what's REALLY strong? A MAN who submits- why? Because I hate men? Nope. Not even close. Because it goes against the grain. That's why. Because society is so Hell bent on dominant men and submissive women. It takes no strength to jump on a bandwagon or to follow what the crowd has done for hundreds of years. Treading OFF the beaten path- now that shit turns me on like I can't even explain in any human language...
Charles was so sure Tasha was the perfect submissive for him, until his neighbor (Joy) walked into his life and he just fucked her right off the bat. Because he just couldn't help himself when she was crying and demure and helpless.. Oh shut the fuck up.
Not to mention Charles is loathe to commit. It didn't work out with his ex-wife and he likes "variety". *sigh*. Why can't a woman enjoy variety in life? Why should a woman be at a man's beck and call (like Charles wants and prefers) but if it's the other way around the man would be considered weak and the woman would be called a feminazi/man hater? Furthermore, why is love a weakness for men, but a necessity for women? If women were stronger, independent, and didn't (need to) keep men to support them then men would have no power - *gasp!* This scares the shit out of weak little boys like Charles Macavoy. Books like this are pushed so the bias in society remains in place.
Tasha asks about having a say in the break up and of course Charles says no. That he's the master. He just replaces her without remorse. There it is! There's the reason you should be independent. Give up everything, and next thing you know you're replaced and trying to find out who you are, how your bills are getting paid...all because he fucked someone else. Someone else that was obedient. But he fucks Tasha before he officially dumps her. he's a guy so it's OK, right?? Why do women want this shit? ::Facepalm::
FYI, Being independent doesn't mean you can't be in a relationship. Just don't lose yourself or give up your life to anyone else (I'm speaking to BOTH genders here). All the bad things Tasha was involved in could have been avoided if she didn't reduce her self worth into nothing more than an object for a man to own. A "master" doesn't let emotions get in the way. Yet if a woman behaves like this she's a bitch...
I loathe that there actually are some men that think strong women are nothing but a challenge. It's sexist and outdated. Books like this reflect the social bias for shaming women into sexual passivity and servile obedience. I shake my head that there are women that crave to be owned and taken care of. Yeah, um, the middle ages are over. We have the right to vote and make our own decisions now. But it's only been 2014 years...eventually this caveman, misogynistic mentality will die off....IF there are more women out there like me who STAND UP instead of fucking kneeling!
Anyone who wants to own another human being has an inferiority complex.
Real men aren't threatened by strong women. They appreciate us. When you no longer see a strong, independent woman as something to challenge you (into getting her to submit), that's the day you've grown up and earned your man card.
Are there any pluses? Sure. 1. The sex scenes are pretty good, considering (which is one reason why I finished the book in the first place). 2. Props for including F/F and a 4 way, and for mentioning biting and eluding to certain parts of play. 3. There was mention of a cane, even though it was never used. 4. There was a mention that not all BDSM couples are M/F when it comes to D/s. I know plenty of same sex couples and female Dommes, so that's a good thing. 5.Extra props for Tasha's cutting up the bodies of her enemies. This is one thing I really liked about her.
I mean I get that this was just a short sexy read but I'm not the type of woman who's turned on by just anything. I prefer more intellectual books-books that make me think... Not an insult, just the kind of reader I am.
Now the story? Well, misogyny aside, there wasn't much of a story or character arc. They don't evolve. Not much drama, and what there was didn't have much substance. I get that this stuff is mainly written for desperate housewife types, but there wasn't even resolve with the Samantha character (the trainee in the beginning). She is part of the 4-way, then just decides to go back to her Dom, Jason (Charles's friend) and be obedient... just like that. The way he was describing her in the beginning made it seem like she was the exact opposite of Tasha's body type, and that there was going to be much more of a love (if you can use that word) triangle than there was.
**Also, there's a note in the beginning that final edits all come from the author. Well, there were several punctuation and grammatical errors. If you want to be a real Dom, you're going to need to learn to learn how to edit. You're a master of nothing until you're a master of your own language.**
You're not a "man apart", Charles. You're just...a man.
Side note: I pay my own bills, open my own doors, and carry my own luggage. Not because I have to, but because I CAN.