The Cage

by Catt Ford

Welcome to The Cage, where you can share the ups and downs of a group of friends as they enjoy a rollicking adventure of sex and love in “the life.” Being a Dom has always come naturally to Lazar Thornton, owner and operator of The Cage, a thriving adult toy store and meeting place for Lazar’s closest friends, Bran, Max, Otto, and the always flamboyant and fierce Miss Dré. But even the best of friends have different tastes in scenes—and in life. Good-humored and laid back, but much in demand as both teacher and Dom, Lazar has always run from love. Until Ben Owen, relative newbie to the BDSM world, arrives wide-eyed and eager to learn, and Lazar wants to teach this sub everything he knows. But despite the openness needed for a Dom/sub relationship to thrive, neither discusses emotions. Feeling the sting of unrequited love, Ben isn’t as sure of his place in Lazar’s life as he wants to be. Lazar will need to read his sub’s heart as well as his mind if he truly wants to keep Ben in his life.

Genres: BDSM, M M Romance, Erotica, Romance, Gay, Contemporary

220 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 31, 2015

About the author

Catt Ford lives in front of the computer monitor, in another world where her imaginary gay friends obey her every command.

She likes cats, chocolate, swing dancing, sleeping, Monty Python, Aussie friends, being silly, spinning other realities with words, and sea glass. She dislikes caterpillars, cigarette smoke, and rude people who think the F-word (as in faggot, or bundle of sticks) is acceptable.

A frustrated perfectionist, she comforts herself with the legend about the weavers of Persian rugs always including one mistake so as not to anger the gods, although she has no need to include a mistake on purpose. One always slips through. Writing fiction has filled a need for clever conversations, only possible when one is in control of both sides, and erotic romances, where everything for the most part turns out happily ever after.

Visit Catt's blog at http://catt-ford.livejournal.com/.

Reviews

[Gigi]

DNF at 43%

Nope. This one just didn't do it for me at ALL! By 43% there still wasn't any private time for Lazar and Ben. (I'm not a fan of public scenes) The book seems to be doing an extensive job setting characters up for the sequels. We heard too much about the other people but hadn't heard much of anything about the two MC's.

Cannot recommend.

[Tamika♥RBF MOOD♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars

Only took 147 days(In actuality 6 long brutal days) to finish this. I deserve a meddle for finishing this book. Something like this I would have immediately DNF. I don't do multiple people point of views. I think that should have been mentioned in the blurb. It's almost like an introduction to a series. A group of people with their own selective issues telling their portion of the story, but it's all intertwining. I literally had to keep pushing myself to finish it. I do think it'll be unfair, because some of these characters I was really interested in. I just feel like it was not enough time to develop them to be great. The main duo relationship feel to the wayside for me because they didn't develop enough chemistry for me. I feel like we walked into them blind.

Some of the characters like Bran, and Otto I really liked their story. I would totally buy a novella for each of them. I didn't want to move on from them. Bran's story especially, it's not common in the mm world for a "straight" guy to fall for a transsexual with hardly any implications, or over reaction. It was just blissfully lovely in my opinion. I thought Miss Dre was too over the top. Every drag queen cliche that has ever been out there was Miss Dre, I liked her some times, and other times I loathe her doing too much. Just her flamboyance was annoying. Max as a character and his relationship was the most unsettling for me. It's not something I'm familiar with in regards to reading about the BDSM community. It was different, and if it was developed more it could have been amazing. That leaves Lazar and Ben, and while they had the most scene time, I don't care for them because I'm interested in Bran and Otto.

I think it was an okay start-up for a series if it becomes one. It was a first read for me by this author. I think it was okay, and I liked her writing style enough.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I honestly don’t know where to start reviewing this book. Usually I like to give a little run down of the plot, especially if I think the blurb doesn’t quite capture it, but my great issue with this story is that I found it lacking in plot. Rereading the blurb I think, yeah that’s kind of how it goes, but I assumed (and perhaps this was entirely my fault) that the book would focus on Lazar and Ben much more than what it did.

From reading the blurb I figured the story would involve Ben and Lazar meeting, beginning a Dom/sub relationship, having amazing kinky sex and then having to work through the issues of developing their connection into more than the physical. But instead, Ben and Lazar have already been a couple for a few months…

Actually, I should add a little side note here and this may be slightly spoilerish – but I just didn’t get it! I didn’t enjoy the beginning of this book at all. Despite the crazy hot sex I was so confused by what was going on that I really just wanted to give up. Lazar and Ben are a couple but suddenly they’re just meeting and a scary group of Doms are locking shy little virgin Ben in a sex shop and are planning on Lazar doing all kinds of stuff to him and by the time I finally understood what the heck was going on, my head hurt. I don’t know if it was suppose to be some sort of – TA DA! Wasn’t that a twist – type moment or if I was suppose to understand what was happening from the beginning but I was utterly lost. But, I’m giving the author the benefit of the doubt and assuming I was just having a particularly thick moment.

So, as I was saying, Ben and Lazar have already been a couple for a few months, they already have the afore mentioned deliciously kinky D/s relationship and they’re at the point where both are seriously developing feelings for the other but neither of them want to talk about it. And I mean there is absolutely no talking about any issues. As far as Ben is aware, Lazar is still having sex with other subs. I think that’s something you’d want to have figured out, especially when the idea of it upsets him so much. I thought this book was going to see these two men grow as a couple and learn to open up and communicate with each other, but that never really happens. Oh, they confess their feelings in the end but you can’t feel them progressing to that point. In fact, I didn’t feel anything for Ben or Lazar. By the end of the book I still didn’t really know anything about them, except they have fantastic sex together.

The blurb mentions Lazar’s friends, Bran, Max, Otto and Miss Dré. These characters were the reason so little page time was spent with Lazar and Ben. All four of these other characters also have at least one chapter each getting their own romances told. But honestly, even here there is way more sex than story. All of these characters were attention-grabbing enough to perhaps get their own story told, but with not enough book to cover so many people I had little interest in hearing about them. I wanted to find out more about Lazar and Ben.

As much as the focus on sex stunted this story it was also its saving grace. The sex was hot, there’s no denying that. And for anybody who has an exhibitionist kink, well this story is tailored for your tastes. We have public sex (more than once), whipping, piercing, cross-dressing…the author doesn’t hold back with the kink factor.

This was by no means a bad book, it just wasn’t for me. I need more plot than sex. However, I think some people will decide this story is right up their alley.

Reviewed for Love Bytes Reviews
http://lovebytesreviews.com/2015/07/3...

[Kristie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another tough read for me. While I'm happy I stuck it out and found the beauty within the pages, it was hard to get through. My review is at Boys In Our Books, where I outline my issues but also fill you in on why I kept going. There are some gems in this book, you just sort of have to fight to get to them.

[Mimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I give this book 3.5 stars. I still stick with the first update that I gave about not knowing what the hell was going on. I thought that Catt would have been more clear with what she was trying to get across in the prologue. I was so lost. So lost that I wanted to stop read and rely on the other reviews that I read before starting on this book. Then I had that OH moment (starting in Chapter 4) and the book started to make a little bit of sense. For me the one thing that redeemed her was how she showed us a tight group of friends and let us explore each of their lives and find out what was going on with them.

[Mathilda Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Die Inhaltsangabe zu »The Cage« ist ein bisschen irreführend, denn die Autorin erzählt nicht nur die Geschichte von Ben und Lazar, sondern auch die der für mich teils viel interessantesten Nebencharaktere wie u.a. Bran, Max und vor allem von Miss Dre.

Und das wurde für mich beim Lesen auch ein bisschen zum Problem, denn gerade im letzten Drittel geraten Ben und Lazar zeitweise völlig in den Hintergrund, was schade ist, weil die Nebencharaktere einer nach dem anderen ihre Geschichte erzählen, was nicht schlecht ist, im Gegenteil, aber ich wünschte mir, sie hätten allesamt mehr Seiten und damit mehr Platz bekommen, denn so liest es sich, als wären in einem Buch eigentlich vier Kurzgeschichten und die Hauptgeschichte von Ben und Lazar erzählt.

Gut gemacht ist sie trotzdem, vor allem die BDSM-Anteile, aber das habe ich auch nicht anders erwartet, und gerade die für mich neueren Spielarten hat Catt Ford gut erklärt und in Szene gesetzt. Von härteren Rollenspielen gleich zu Beginn des Buches, über eine Master-Slave-Beziehung, bis hin zu Bran, der … Nein, das verrate ich nicht, lest einfach selbst. Es lohnt sich.

Ich vergebe zufriedene vier Sterne, denn wann bekommt man schon mal 5 Happy Ends zum Preis von einem?

[Risa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Cage

handelt von einer Gruppe von Freunden, die alle etwas gemeinsam haben, ihre gemeinsame Vorliebe für BDSM-Spiele.

Viel mehr kann ich zur Handlung auch nicht sagen. Außer Sex und verschiedene Varianten von BDMS passiert fast nichts. Auch das Paar Lazar und Ben konnte mich nicht überzeugen, da war die Transfrau Miss Dré schon um einiges interessanter. Doch leider kam ihre Story viel zu kurz.

Mein Dank geht an Dreamspinner Press für das erhaltene Rezensionsexemplar

[Ed Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is 2 1/2 stars for me. This is my second book by Catt Ford and the two were for me were like night and day. "A Strong Hand" was a wonderful book about an older man and a younger sub.

This book was about a group of friends, and it was all over the place. It jumped from one story line to another, so I never felt close to any of the characters.

Dressing Ben up as a girl all the time was a real turn off for me. So if I had known that was what was going to happen I would never have bought the book.

The best part of this book was Miss Dre and Roger. She was the character I felt was the most defined. Without her I would have given the book one star.

I thought this book was trying to present a lot of different lifestyles within the BDSM community and say they were all ok. I got the message, but I felt preached at not entertained.

[Barbara Douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this, mostly because it was genuinely funny a lot of the time. The sex was good, the plot was nearly non-existent, but the interactions among the very varied cast were original and highly entertaining.

[Dallie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So wished I could read more about each group individually, but I did enjoy what I got of this.

[ItsAboutTheBook · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review can be read at It's About The Book

The Cage is a store that sells BDSM fetish items and is owned by Lazar Thornton. It’s a place where he and his friends meet and talk. They also meet at a local diner, but as they’re all involved in the kinky lifestyle in one way or another, The Cage is the perfect place for them to talk freely and openly. Or not talk. Lazar’s boyfriend Ben is the newbie in the group and the newbie in the kinky lifestyle. The more Ben learns the more he begins to think Lazar is out of his league. While Ben and Lazar deal with their own romance Miss Dre, Otto, Sherm, Max, and Bran all deal with their romances and relationships and all deal with them in their own ways.

This book was an inter-weaving of five very different relationships. Each one exhibiting some form of BDSM lifestyle. They also ranged from reconciliation, established, closeted, nascent, and first date. As Ben learns more about the group of friends he learns more about various manifestations of kinky lifestyles as expressed by loving relationships. The reader is along for Ben’s education. That’s great for the reader if an education in kinky lifestyles is what you need. If you’re already a firm proponent that kink is what you make of it this book comes across as preaching to the choir. The characters were well developed and interesting, but the format didn’t allow for much depth in any of the relationships. What we did get was a montage of tableaux that beautifully showcased various couples in intimate and loving moments.

I had one serious issue with the book and it involved the character Bran. Despite not having a successful relationship with a woman, Bran maintains he’s heterosexual to the group of friends. Miss Dre does not accept this. The logic at work here is the same as people saying the love of a good woman can make a man straight, or sex with a real man can make a woman straight. Why can’t we just accept at face value what people say of their sexuality? The resolution to Bran’s story was nuanced and well written, but the lack of his acceptance from his gay friends was just as repugnant to me as the lack of acceptance from heterosexual friends and family of a gay person. I would like to stress Bran wasn’t forced or tricked into anything and his story was very nuanced.

There was no single event driving the story of this book. Like any character driven story this one was a bit of a risk. That we had six characters to follow made this one more risky. I don’t think it worked for me. I do like character driven stories, but I was unable to really become interested in any specific character as they were frequently changing and we didn’t get a good long look at the life of any of them. This was specifically about the sexual and emotional relationships of five couples. Not their lives as a whole, but just their relationship and how kink factored into it. I needed more of the men and who they were outside of kink.

[JJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really put a smile on my face. The story starts out with a highly erotic encounter between Lazar, the owner of an adult store called The Cage, and the young and seemingly shy Ben. After the public display between Lazar and Ben, their transgendered friend, Miss Dre, dresses Ben like a woman and they all go out to a drag show. Following this outing, the story jumps from one couple to the next among Ben and Lazar’s friends. Eventually Ben realizes that all his friends are finding love, and though Ben has feelings for Lazar, he doesn’t know where he stands with him. Ben admits to himself that their sex is amazing, but he worries that sex is all Lazar wants him for.

I have to say that I was hooked from the very beginning of this book. Though the characters had just been introduced, they quickly grew on me and the sexual encounter in the opening scene will forever be engrained in my mind. I also loved Miss Dre, especially since she is such a positive and sexy transgender character. Although The Cage starts off strong, things became a little confusing toward the middle when the viewpoint strayed away from the main characters and jumps from one couple to the next, showing how each of their friends find love. These sex scenes were hard for me to get into, but I really liked seeing how Miss Dre gets together with her lover. A transgender relationship was a refreshing change from what I’m used to reading.

Though the story veers away from the Ben and Lazar, it eventually comes back them, and I was pleased with the happy ending. I recommend this book to anyone who loves M/M Romance, BDSM, and drag.

[JustJen "Miss Conduct" · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 star review by The Blogger Girls.

This story was a bit different. It’s about Laz and Ben, going through some issues when their D/S relationship becomes more, and it follows them a bit through some of their scenes and lives together. Laz owns the store/dungeon/club where the guys all congregate and partake. Ben is his sweet sub.

But the story is also about the other characters, which take over the story almost more than Laz and Ben. Stealing the show by a mile is Ms. Dre, a glamorous queen who is also a top and bad ass domme. She is a very powerful character and it takes just the right person to fit with her. Luckily she gives Royal a second chance and we get to see her really shine.

Then, there is Otto and Sherm, an actual couple who are the guinea pigs for the new products and toys for Laz’s store. They are sweet and quite interesting as they test drive some of the latest and greatest. Bran is one of the straight friends who has yet been able to keep a girlfriend. Ms. Dre comes up with an interesting and fruitful solution to this when she plays matchmaker. Rounding out the group is grumpy Max, who has a big secret of his own. Honestly, I think I enjoyed their stories most of all, as they were each quite interesting in their own ways.

I honestly was not blown away by the BDSM aspects here. They weren’t bad, but I found I was more interested in other things. At times, the scenes felt just a tiny bit colder than I expected from people in actual relationships, but I really enjoyed them the rest of the time. The coffee clutch meetings were fabulous and helped endear me more to the characters as the story went on. This story really shows how friends become family, one of which I really wouldn’t mind being a part.

[Avid Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Cage by Catt Ford
5 stars
This book has BDSM in all forms.
I was given this book for an honest review by Inked Rainbow Reads.

First off, let me say that I would have given this book 4 stars originally if I had not taken a few days to mull over what I thought of the story. The synopsis is very misleading. I still haven't decided if it's a good type of misleading or a frustrating one.

There are several characters in this story that I would consider main characters: You have the lovely Ms. Dre and Royal, Lazar and Ben, Forrest and Max, Bran and Callista, Otto and Sherman.

Yes, the story is somewhat about how Ben and Lazar navigate their relationship, but it is so much more than that, which is why I ended up giving 5 stars.

I really enjoyed this book - I liked how all of their stories wove together and you were given a glimpse at each of these couples' lives. It is wonderful how accepting they all are of each. They are supportive, loving, kinky and fun.

It's hard for me to write about each character without giving away their story, but I would definitely recommend reading this. It's a family who cares, a family who pokes and prods and a group who let anything go. There is some hot sexiness, wonderful Doms and awesome Subs.

[Antisocial Recluse · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was more like a 3.5 but since I enjoyed the BDSM scenes, I rounded it up. There really was too little about the development of Ben and Lazar's relationship. This was pretty much just PWP. I didn't really mind the vignettes with the other couples. Ben was at least a part of the narrative in the lead up to Miss Dre and Royal, as well as Bran and Callista. Otto and Sherm, and Max and Forrest kind of appeared out of the blue. They were interesting as couples. I can agree that this would have been better as a series of novellas, or preferably, fully fleshed out stories for each pair. While I liked it overall, it was too superficial, with the lack of character building and back stories. I was also a little thrown, when Forrest was supposed to be fighting for gay marriage rights in California, yet this was published in 2015. Didn't really understand that unless it's a reissue of an earlier work.

[Widya Vello · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kinda a bit disappointed with the story, I expected to read more about Ben and Lazar's relationship. Although I like another character like Miss Dre, Bran, Otto and Max but getting all of their sex scene in one book is just too much. That makes the story less focus, most of it only sex scene from one to another. I have to skim a lot of page. But if you're looking for kinky-hot steamy BDSM story, maybe this one will do.

[Donene Hayley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I loved the diverse cast in this one! Full of humor and the full spectrum of kink, this enjoyable story is low angst and just the right amount of sweet and sassy! Be warned, this isn't just one love story, the plot focuses on 4 different couples and how they find each other and make BDSM work for them.

[Lidia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't the Catt Ford who I remembered, and only because I liked very much former her books I finished this and rating it with three stars. I have had problem to connect with the writing from the start, not understand much the protagonists nor the plot, then I have find all disconnected though the every couple's story was interesting...but also a bit flat.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I originally was going to give this four stars because I didn't know where the story was going at first and it drifted from the two MCs Ben and Lazar. As the story progressed I realised there was a whole cast of MCs each showing their way of loving their partner, and each other as a group of friends. Each character was special but miss Dré stole the show.

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this, review coming soon.

[JD · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not just a story of two men living the lifestyle. It's So much more. It reminded me of the film Love Actually but with a kinky side.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love SM and was happy to find this book. However, I also like a strong storyline and this book didn't have one. Still enjoyed it, though.

[Ptdog · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just couldn't finish this book. The plot didn't move along much, at all. The banter grew too much for me to take. I just didn't get what the author was trying to do here.

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blurb and story really do not match. Too much dialogue. Last 35% actually pretty good.

[J. Johanis · Rating 4 out of 5]

drag queens and gay cross dressing. definitely loved it :)