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Kitten #1
Kitten
Shaun lives in a world where were creatures are treated as pets for work and sexual pleasure. Until a few days before his 18th birthday, Shaun believed himself a normal human. Days after his first change, he finds himself sold to the training institute. His breed a rare white tiger form, highly prized and sought after. Escaping the institute, Shaun is free until a human Master finds him.
When Ashley claims him, Shaun is at first resentful. Given no time to adjust to what he is, Shaun simply can't accept who he is. With infinite patience, Ashley sets out to help Shaun learn to accept himself and to give new meaning to the label placed on Shaun.
When Ashley claims him, Shaun is at first resentful. Given no time to adjust to what he is, Shaun simply can't accept who he is. With infinite patience, Ashley sets out to help Shaun learn to accept himself and to give new meaning to the label placed on Shaun.
ebook
First published January 1, 2006
81 people want to read
About the author
Mychael Black
324 books113 followersFormerly known as Kay Derwydd
Myc has been writing professionally since 2005, solo and with Shayne Carmichael. Genres include pretty much anything (no steampunk yet), though Myc is well known for paranormal stories. When not writing, Myc is usually playing PC games, reading, editing, watching movies and shows on Netflix and Amazon, or spending way too much time on Facebook.
Myc has been writing professionally since 2005, solo and with Shayne Carmichael. Genres include pretty much anything (no steampunk yet), though Myc is well known for paranormal stories. When not writing, Myc is usually playing PC games, reading, editing, watching movies and shows on Netflix and Amazon, or spending way too much time on Facebook.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 16, 2010
Not a bad story. It tried for cute and light-hearted and border-line serious toward the end, but I feel it kind of fell short of them all.
Ashley seems far too ready to accept and love Shaun, considering the painful past with his previous were lover Illian. I was constantly waiting for him to put the two together and realize that hello, history COULD be about to repeat itself, but he never seemed to even entertain that as a possibility. Or he ignored it, one of the two.
Shaun is an innocent trying to make his way in the world as best he can. The push-forward/pull-back, purr/flinch actions he is hard pressed to release give him depth, in a way. Still, it seemed rather superficial. He adores Ashley in short order but I kept feeling that it was some wavering form of Stockholm Syndrome only not quite; that it was all due to Shaun's training and wasn't much more real than that. He loved Ashley because he'd been TRAINED to love his master.
Ashley's tendency for the Dom/Sub scene in bed was briefly touched on and then experimented in one or two scenes but it just felt false. I really couldn't see Ashley enjoying games like that, with all he'd undergone and been witness to, and especially not with Shaun, whose background was even worse.
Ashley seems far too ready to accept and love Shaun, considering the painful past with his previous were lover Illian. I was constantly waiting for him to put the two together and realize that hello, history COULD be about to repeat itself, but he never seemed to even entertain that as a possibility. Or he ignored it, one of the two.
Shaun is an innocent trying to make his way in the world as best he can. The push-forward/pull-back, purr/flinch actions he is hard pressed to release give him depth, in a way. Still, it seemed rather superficial. He adores Ashley in short order but I kept feeling that it was some wavering form of Stockholm Syndrome only not quite; that it was all due to Shaun's training and wasn't much more real than that. He loved Ashley because he'd been TRAINED to love his master.
Ashley's tendency for the Dom/Sub scene in bed was briefly touched on and then experimented in one or two scenes but it just felt false. I really couldn't see Ashley enjoying games like that, with all he'd undergone and been witness to, and especially not with Shaun, whose background was even worse.
March 18, 2013
This is great, but tigers can't purr so now I'm just reading garbage. (à la this:
And come on. Tigers and shrimp?
You mean like this?
Darling, you're getting your cats mixed up.
I'll just pretend that Shaun's some kind of confused snow leopard, then. (Snow leopards can purr...)
The kitty-loving was cute, yeah, but it was also really weird.
I didn't like the universe, per se. It brings up a lot of issues that I think still needs to be explored much more. I'm also curious about the training/indoctrination thing.
It wasn't bad, but the vagueness about the shifters was a little off-setting.
You know how recently online vendors and such have had crackdowns on "taboos" like pedophilia, necrophilia, bestiality?
Does it count if it's shifter-sex? Or is it only okay if they don't have sex in animal form? What if there are two of them and both are in shifted form? And what if there's that magic half-form? Does that count?
I just... *shrug
And come on. Tigers and shrimp?
You mean like this?
Darling, you're getting your cats mixed up.
I'll just pretend that Shaun's some kind of confused snow leopard, then. (Snow leopards can purr...)
The kitty-loving was cute, yeah, but it was also really weird.
I didn't like the universe, per se. It brings up a lot of issues that I think still needs to be explored much more. I'm also curious about the training/indoctrination thing.
It wasn't bad, but the vagueness about the shifters was a little off-setting.
You know how recently online vendors and such have had crackdowns on "taboos" like pedophilia, necrophilia, bestiality?
Does it count if it's shifter-sex? Or is it only okay if they don't have sex in animal form? What if there are two of them and both are in shifted form? And what if there's that magic half-form? Does that count?
I just... *shrug
October 14, 2011
Drinking's time game!
Every time 'My kitten' or 'My Master' is used, drink a shot. For the most adventurous of you, drink two different kind of alcohol, one for every name.
Good luck with your alcoholic coma!
Every time 'My kitten' or 'My Master' is used, drink a shot. For the most adventurous of you, drink two different kind of alcohol, one for every name.
Good luck with your alcoholic coma!
August 3, 2011
This novella is quite astonishing, and richly detailed for only being 42 pages. Shapeshifters have been genetically engineered and trained as pets for humans. Though sentient, they are true pets - wearing a collar and expected to sleep and eat on the floor when they aren't "pleasing" their masters. This isn't consensual BDSM--they have been bred to the leash, but did not choose it. Shuan thought he was human until he shifted before his 18th birthday. He was sold to The Institute to be trained, but escaped. Ashley is not like other masters. He wants to love and protect Shuan, but will society allow him?
The romance in the story is built slow. In fact, sex doesn't occur until nearly half-way through the novella, but the anticipation made it that much better. The two main character's are very well developed with a sufficient backstory. However, the story was disturbing and also quite sad. Though Ashley and Shuan end up together (as in all good romances) there is some torture in the story and the sad fact of a pet's existence is never far from a reader's mind. Most of humanity is portrayed quite rightly as cruel and it made some of the reading difficult. Unfortunately, treating people as less than human continues even today and "Kitten" is an unusual metaphor for such sorrow. Though the ending was happy, there is the lingering doubt that their happiness could still be ruined. (Which is no doubt where the sequels come in.)
The romance in the story is built slow. In fact, sex doesn't occur until nearly half-way through the novella, but the anticipation made it that much better. The two main character's are very well developed with a sufficient backstory. However, the story was disturbing and also quite sad. Though Ashley and Shuan end up together (as in all good romances) there is some torture in the story and the sad fact of a pet's existence is never far from a reader's mind. Most of humanity is portrayed quite rightly as cruel and it made some of the reading difficult. Unfortunately, treating people as less than human continues even today and "Kitten" is an unusual metaphor for such sorrow. Though the ending was happy, there is the lingering doubt that their happiness could still be ruined. (Which is no doubt where the sequels come in.)
January 3, 2015
¿Quién no querría un gatito como Shaun? Lástima el mundo en el que le ha tocado vivir, donde solo es reconocido como mascota. Sin embargo, tiene la suerte de ser encontrado por Ashley, quien lo trata como si fuera su igual y termina creando entre ambos una relación más allá de la simple amistad. Recomendable
January 12, 2010
Interesting story world. I liked how the book started, but Mychael Black lost me about halfway through the story. I wanted Ashley to take a more alpha role, the dude was just too limp-wristed for me.
This was okay, but I won't be buying the sequel.
This was okay, but I won't be buying the sequel.
January 5, 2010
I'd give it 1.5 if I could. Not so good, but it was OK. Not horrible, just not what I like.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews