Turning the tables on rigid gender roles, the stories in She’s on Top honor the Amazon, the dominatrix, the handcuff-toting, whip-wielding she-devil of the male bottom’s deepest dreams. Employing every item in their bag of tricks, from strap-ons to metal cinches, these hot dommes like nothing better than teasing and tormenting their devoted subjects – often at the same time. With stories by some of the best writers in the field of BDSM erotica such as Stan Kent, Debra Hyde, and Saskia Walker, She’s on Top shows that pleasure’s best when dispensed by a firm female hand.
I'm the editor of the Best Women's Erotica of the Year series and over 70 anthologies including The Big Book of Orgasms and Come Again: Sex Toy Erotica. I've also written a wide range of erotica about everything from French fries to fishnets. I write about books, culture, sexuality and relationships, teach erotica writing workshops and consult with erotica authors and sex writers to help them advance their careers. I read a wide range of genres, from erotica to romance to mystery to memoir to graphic novels and anything that strikes my fancy. See my website for my newsletter with book giveaways and writing samples.
First off let me say it’s not lost on me that for my first ever read & his first ever choice he chooses this book (ha ha). Reason 1 million of why we didn’t work out…for all practical purposes if we were to be classified I’d argue we are probably both submissive… or submissive switches. He laughs…no you definitely dominated even when submitting. The Hubs hears us arguing so we decide to have him be the final say. He’s not sure either….we need someone else to weight in. Hubs does also find it funny I’m to be the reader this time, apparently I’ll now be reading to two (this is going to take forever):
Suit & Tie – and so the debate begins. The coffee thing makes the Hubs smirk. We all agree this story does nothing for us.
By A Firm Hand – Sunny & I both liked this. The Hubs decided the whole thing (reading together) was more of our thing & bailed out. I decided Sunny’s the reader so we switched back (yeah that’s right cause he likes it when I tell him what to do)…
The Mistress Meets Her Match – So glad we’d switched back for this. Two lines “I want to fuck you so bad it hurts” & “Please let me fuck you – Pix” pure perfection.
Waiting for Me - Loved this, the ending is what did it.
The Inner Vixen – He enjoys it, I am unfocused, which is why he called. I’m restless and a restless Pix is no good. I need to travel so we end up just talking for a bit. The story was good overall but not what I needed.
From the Back Cover: Turning the tables on rigid gender roles, the stories in She's on Top honor the Amazon, the dominatrix, and other handcuff-toting, whip-wielding she-devils of the male bottom's deepest dreams. Employing every item in their bag of trips, from strap-ons to metal cinches, these hot dommes like nothing better than teasing and tormenting their devoted subjects. With stories by Stan Kent, Debra Hyde, Alison Tyler, and many more of the best writers in the field, She's on Top shows that pleasure's best when dispensed by a firm female hand.
What Stephanie Thought: Female dominance is a fresh, satisfying topic of the erotic genre that will surely have readers raising their eyebrows at the unconventional, yet delectable strength found in us women, as well as kneeling at our feet, begging for more pain...and for more pleasure.
She's on Top is a collection of eighteen short stories about dominance and submission. But unlike most wishful ponderings go, this book turns the tables by giving women the upperhand in relationships. Relationships that range from lovers -- intimate, monotonous partners -- to vacant acquaintances -- enemies and one-night stands. No two tales are alike in this hot, heavy -- definitely heavy -- anthology. Some are very hardcore, with chains, whips, batons, while others are actually quite romantic, emphasizing the fondness strong men have for the even stronger dominatrices. However, they all deliver the common puissant message: men may wear the pants in the relationship, but women are the ones who get to purchase them.
Though I love sinful reads, I'll admit this one was a little too gritty for me. Lots of whipping occurs, and in one story, blood is even drawn, and that kind of fetishism makes me wince. Not all of the stories are like this however, which is why I even remotely enjoyed the book. I like the idea of female dominance (what can I say; I'm a feminist), but that doesn't mean injuring or degrading men, even for the purpose of arousal, is very appealing to me.
Rachel Kramer Bussell's sexy, choosy selections are fun, intense reads that will stick with you, making you hope, whether you are a girl or a guy, some day, you can play out some of these femme fatale fantasies of your own.
Stephanie Loves: "'One can lounge over a good read, but one must work over a bad boy,' [Judith] claimed, setting her novel aside." -- from Debra Hyde's "By a Firm Hand".
Where Stephanie Got It: Received from Naked Reader Book Club via EdenFantasys for review.
Radical Rating: 7 hearts- A few flaws here and there, but wouldn’t mind rereading. ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
so obviously i did not get this book from my local library. (although how cool would that be if the library had an erotica section!) instead, i bought it from my local sex shop. see, those places aren't always seedy or only carry toys. you can get literature there too. and i got to say this is one of the best erotica books i have ever read. sometimes i can appreciate the stories without getting hot and bothered but this book seriously had me feeling some kind of way...and that way was horny
i loved every single story except one. The Queening Chair by Kate Dominic was not good to me. it read more as a funny story than a erotic one. i kept laughing as the "Queen" was describing all the great head she was getting to her boyfriend. Room 2201 was definitely one of my favorites. i liked the use of humiliation and the guy on guy action. Why Can't I Be You? was also great, although too short for me to fully enjoy the story. gender bending erotica might be something i have to look into since that story interested me so much.
i have made it a personal mission to buy every single BDSM book published by Cleis. they have the best authors writing the best stories of this stuff. i'm glad that i can add this book to my growing collection.
Most of the stories ranged from barely tolerable to mildly interesting, to me. "Feeder" was my favorite. Mostly the relationships were, in a word, superficial. I think I'm spoiled by fanfiction. Also, heed "erotic" - all the stories include sexual content, not just kink, and come from a very sexual perspective.
The stories worth reading at all, in my opinion, were: Waiting for Me by MinaRose Mark of Ownership by Teresa Noelle Roberts His Just Rewards by Rachel Kramer Bussel Why Can't I Be You? by Alison Tyler Room 2201 by N.T. Morley Working Late by Andrea Dale Ottoman Empress by Noelle Keely City Lights by Kathleen Bradean Feeder by Adelaide Clark Shades of Red by Lisabet Sarai The Queening Chair by Kate Dominic
Like all anthologies it was a mixed bag. Some were just okay, some I ended up skipping because they just weren't at all my thing, and a few were genuinely quite hot. Even though some weren't for me, I still appreciated the variety. D/s isn't just a single sort of dynamic, or set of sex acts. Different stories focused more on pain, or direction, or humiliation, or service, etc. etc. I also liked that the enjoyment of the men wasn't ignored, and that many of the stories really showcased the great care the dommes took to make sure events were fulfilling for them as well.
She’s on Top. A compilation of short stories, with women as the dominant partner (for a change); you can go, story by story, or as I suspect, you will not be able to put the book down, once you start getting in the mood. All are worth reading for a variety of reasons, variety being one of the best reasons; the stories cover a multitude of scenes, and action. This is a great introduction to anyone who has not read any Fem Dom erotica before, but is curious, nothing too extreme, and comes up with plenty of ideas that could safely be tried at home. There is a relational aspect to each story it’s not just sex. All the contributors are experienced writers of erotica and it shows, editor Rachel Kramer Bussel deserves credit for assembling this collection of well written stories; thoroughly recommended If this whets your appetite, try Ann Rice “Exit to Eden” a full length novel.
Good book. Some stories are "too quick". In BDSM, it's important for me to have a mindset, my brain needs to be tickled before action happen. I like the details from the action, and this is impossible in this type of book (short stories). So I can't blame any of the authors, simply can tell I personally need more pages per story to get the complete personality of each of the characters.
I guess it would have been different if all stories have been linked each to the other, keeping the same characters and details around each of the scenarios.
I give it 3 stars, but I was close to give 4 stars. Again, it might not be the book, it might be only me or my perception.
Pretty much the same comments as for the male version. I liked it. And I enjoyed how emotional and romantic notions are in it as well. Not just crazy wild sex. There is depth. I Loved the story set in the what...1800's? the best! :) Old school dominance is more fun since it was taboo even to show some ankle!
I really enjoyed this collection of women-in-charge stories. They were very steamy, erotic, well written, and NOT sleazy. Most of the relationships portrayed are loving and respectful. The couples play. The men are eager and oh so willing to submit. Great stuff for feminists or any one sick of The Fifty Shades fad and the knock off female sub books that followed.