Behind the Mask is a true story, a memoir, by Emma Sayle and her secret life. Emma grew up in an ordinary family with a doting mother and father and two siblings. She never really wanted for anything, but she craved her father’s attention. Growing up she went to the BEST schools and made some very close, long-lasting friendships. Upon adulthood, she took a boring office job until she was invited to attend a wedding where it was anything but ordinary. Guests left their inhibitions at the door and explored each other with passion and anonymity. Realizing that most sex clubs, companies, movies, etc, are run by men for men, Emma created Killing Kittens – a club where women make the rules and men must be invited to participate. She hosts monthly parties where guests must be members and they must wear a mask to be allowed entry. At these parties the guests can choose how or if they want to participate – by watching, touching, and doing.
While business is flourishing, Emma’s personal life is anything but. She finds out the man she has been seeing has also been seeing a fellow club member. Her father leaves her mother for a much younger woman, draining their joint bank account to lavish the new woman with gifts. When she does find someone to be with, things find a way to fall apart. Eventually, she is beaten and abused by a man she trusted and begins to question what she does wrong.
Eventually, the parties start to spiral downward and things aren’t going as well as they once were. Emma’s entire life takes a turn for the worse and she is not sure how to handle it all.
I found this book to be incredibly sexy and very interesting. The Killing Kittens goings on are very graphic – like reading a really good erotic romance novel! It’s almost hard to believe that these things are based on real life, yet they are and probably happen more often than not in today’s world. The things the author has been through and the way she built up her company, all while not “playing” during the parties is fascinating and admirable. This book reads more like an erotic romance than a memoir, which is great at holding the reader’s attention. I enjoyed it a lot and am glad I gave it a try.
*copy provided for review