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Panic Snap
Her first novel, Topping from Below, was a cause celebre of erotic fiction. Now, in Panic Snap, Laura Reese once again crosses the boundary between pleasure and pain with a story of extreme sexual obsession and one family's terrible secret.
The accused murderess in a sensational trial, Carly Tyler waits outside a California courtroom as a jury decides her Is she the depraved Madame de Sade of the newspaper headlines or the innocent victim of one wealthy family's gothic past? Left for dead by the side of a road fifteen years earlier, she emerged from a coma with no memory and a face completely altered by the plastic surgery need to repair her injuries. Who is she and what happened to her? The trail leads her to a magnificent vineyard and its mysterious owner, James McGuane, a man of wealth and immense sexual charisma who holds the key to her past. But to unlock it, she must risk her life on a terrifying erotic journey that tears apart a dynasty and reveals the truth about an appalling murder.
The accused murderess in a sensational trial, Carly Tyler waits outside a California courtroom as a jury decides her Is she the depraved Madame de Sade of the newspaper headlines or the innocent victim of one wealthy family's gothic past? Left for dead by the side of a road fifteen years earlier, she emerged from a coma with no memory and a face completely altered by the plastic surgery need to repair her injuries. Who is she and what happened to her? The trail leads her to a magnificent vineyard and its mysterious owner, James McGuane, a man of wealth and immense sexual charisma who holds the key to her past. But to unlock it, she must risk her life on a terrifying erotic journey that tears apart a dynasty and reveals the truth about an appalling murder.
336 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2000
24 people are currently reading
463 people want to read
About the author
Laura Reese
8 books101 followersLaura Reese is the author of the critically acclaimed Topping from Below and Panic Snap. She lives in Davis, California.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
July 19, 2013
This book should have a label "Read me if you dare"
I'm giving this book only two stars because I'm pissed! I really wanted to give this book 4.5 stars, because if I overlook all the bull, it is brilliant and captivating story. I read it in one sitting. But...
Why an author, with such a huge amount of talent, would pull a such a nasty trick on her fans is beyond me. Her first book shows that she has it in her. So why go there?
If you've read Topping From Bellow, when you read my review, déjà vu will smack you across the face.
The story is about a woman, Carly, who is looking for answers. 15 years ago, when she was 17, she was found in a ditch, naked and beaten to a pulp, with broken bones and bleeding all over.
She spend two weeks in a coma. When she woke up, she had no memory of who she was, how she got there and what happened to her. First 17 years of her life felt like a black hole.
She spend many years trying to remember, looking for answer, being angry at the person who did this to her and her family that never came looking for her, even though her story was in the media for quite some time after she was found.
Years went by and she kind of made peace with what happened to her and that she might never find any answers.
One day she sees an article in a news paper about a family that runs a winery, with a man's picture in it. She gets this feeling that she knows him. She doesn't remember neither how or where she met him, but she feels that he's somehow connected to what happened to her. The picture triggered a piece of memory that is trying to break through a brick wall that her trauma build. She doesn't get her memory back, but her gut is telling her that she needs to meet this man, because he might give her some answers.
And here is where I started grinding my teeth.
She arrives to this place where McGuane family lives, she meets James (suspect el número uno), Gina (suspect el número dos) and their mother (cute old thing).
Guess how she's going to get truth out of James. Yep, by doing every nasty thing he asks of her. Because that's the deal: you give me what I want and I'll give you what you want. And OMG he is dark and perverse psycho :-). But she learns very fast that she enjoys the things he does to her, even though all of his requests are so over the top. I think it would make even hardcore fans of dark erotica go "WTF?!" :-). But all of their encounters are very well written, as disturbing as they are. There is nothing romantic about their relationship. Their relationship is not about love or romance, it's about dark possession and addiction.
So, every time they get together he tells her an episode from her past. And every time he ups his game. Even though she is a willing participant in everything he does, you get this feeling of dread. First of all because she suspects that he is the one that almost killed her 15 years ago, it's hard to put trust into hands of a potential psychopath, but also because he doesn't offer her a safe word and pushes both her body and her mind to the limit. Every time it makes Carly wonder just how far he is going to go this time.
There is a lot of questions surrounding Gina's involvement in all of this, because she acts very creepy too. She has very close relationship with her brother, and very soon you start to question just how close, because you can see that nothing is off limits for those two. It's never said "out loud" that their relationship goes beyond sister and brother love, but from the way Gina acts around James makes you think that there is something more going on. It could be nothing, but it could be something very kinky and perverse :). That's when she becomes suspect number two. It's very possible that it was her who hurt Carly out of jealousy all those years ago.
The deeper you get into the story the darker and more twisted it gets when puzzle pieces starts coming together. Even though there are only two suspects it's still hard to figure out which one of them did it and what their motives were. I got to a point in the story where I started to question if there was a victim in all of this. At some point they all started acting crazy.
Author describes the scenery in a very beautiful and romantic way, and that is what gives this story even darker feel, because characters are anything but. How can monsters live in a such a beautiful place :-)?
The ending, like the whole story, was almost identical to Topping from Bellow. Different names, different places, couple of new sexual encounters, but everything else was same old. The behavior of two main characters was identical to the characters from TFB. The author did threw one major twist at the end, which was nice, but I still can't forgive the fact that she simply took and re-wrote her first book.
If you haven't read her first book you might like it, but I'm not sure you will if you have. On a positive side, I don't regret reading it, I haven't read anything quite as dark since TFB. But I think I overdosed a little on all things dark and twisted :). I need something sweet and romantic now :).
I'm giving this book only two stars because I'm pissed! I really wanted to give this book 4.5 stars, because if I overlook all the bull, it is brilliant and captivating story. I read it in one sitting. But...
Why an author, with such a huge amount of talent, would pull a such a nasty trick on her fans is beyond me. Her first book shows that she has it in her. So why go there?
If you've read Topping From Bellow, when you read my review, déjà vu will smack you across the face.
The story is about a woman, Carly, who is looking for answers. 15 years ago, when she was 17, she was found in a ditch, naked and beaten to a pulp, with broken bones and bleeding all over.
When the farmworker found me in the field, I was lying in a newly dug hole, half-buried, as if the person who put me there was interrupted before he could finish the job. (...) My body, like a newborn's, blood-covered and naked.
She spend two weeks in a coma. When she woke up, she had no memory of who she was, how she got there and what happened to her. First 17 years of her life felt like a black hole.
She spend many years trying to remember, looking for answer, being angry at the person who did this to her and her family that never came looking for her, even though her story was in the media for quite some time after she was found.
Years went by and she kind of made peace with what happened to her and that she might never find any answers.
One day she sees an article in a news paper about a family that runs a winery, with a man's picture in it. She gets this feeling that she knows him. She doesn't remember neither how or where she met him, but she feels that he's somehow connected to what happened to her. The picture triggered a piece of memory that is trying to break through a brick wall that her trauma build. She doesn't get her memory back, but her gut is telling her that she needs to meet this man, because he might give her some answers.
And here is where I started grinding my teeth.
She arrives to this place where McGuane family lives, she meets James (suspect el número uno), Gina (suspect el número dos) and their mother (cute old thing).
Guess how she's going to get truth out of James. Yep, by doing every nasty thing he asks of her. Because that's the deal: you give me what I want and I'll give you what you want. And OMG he is dark and perverse psycho :-). But she learns very fast that she enjoys the things he does to her, even though all of his requests are so over the top. I think it would make even hardcore fans of dark erotica go "WTF?!" :-). But all of their encounters are very well written, as disturbing as they are. There is nothing romantic about their relationship. Their relationship is not about love or romance, it's about dark possession and addiction.
So, every time they get together he tells her an episode from her past. And every time he ups his game. Even though she is a willing participant in everything he does, you get this feeling of dread. First of all because she suspects that he is the one that almost killed her 15 years ago, it's hard to put trust into hands of a potential psychopath, but also because he doesn't offer her a safe word and pushes both her body and her mind to the limit. Every time it makes Carly wonder just how far he is going to go this time.
There is a lot of questions surrounding Gina's involvement in all of this, because she acts very creepy too. She has very close relationship with her brother, and very soon you start to question just how close, because you can see that nothing is off limits for those two. It's never said "out loud" that their relationship goes beyond sister and brother love, but from the way Gina acts around James makes you think that there is something more going on. It could be nothing, but it could be something very kinky and perverse :). That's when she becomes suspect number two. It's very possible that it was her who hurt Carly out of jealousy all those years ago.
The deeper you get into the story the darker and more twisted it gets when puzzle pieces starts coming together. Even though there are only two suspects it's still hard to figure out which one of them did it and what their motives were. I got to a point in the story where I started to question if there was a victim in all of this. At some point they all started acting crazy.
Author describes the scenery in a very beautiful and romantic way, and that is what gives this story even darker feel, because characters are anything but. How can monsters live in a such a beautiful place :-)?
The ending, like the whole story, was almost identical to Topping from Bellow. Different names, different places, couple of new sexual encounters, but everything else was same old. The behavior of two main characters was identical to the characters from TFB. The author did threw one major twist at the end, which was nice, but I still can't forgive the fact that she simply took and re-wrote her first book.
If you haven't read her first book you might like it, but I'm not sure you will if you have. On a positive side, I don't regret reading it, I haven't read anything quite as dark since TFB. But I think I overdosed a little on all things dark and twisted :). I need something sweet and romantic now :).
January 14, 2018
Taboo to the Extreme
October 3, 2014
I wasn’t aware that one of my favourite writers in the Erotica genre, Laura Reese, had a new book out. I found out, more or less, by accident. I’d logged into Amazon to check out the publication date of Laura’s Erotic thriller, “Topping from Below,”(1995) and I stumbled across her latest novel; “Panic Snap.”
So, not only was I pleasantly surprised and ordered the book immediately, but I was delighted to discover that Topping From Below is back in print! Why it ever went out of print I’ll never understand; I can only surmise that a lot of people, were doing as I had, and ordered their hard copy of the book, still from Amazon, but via the independent sellers. (And, that btw is a cool way to negotiate at Amazon. The books are often next to nothing -- all you pay is for mailing and the books, unless they say otherwise, are near perfect.) But I digress, I’m supposing that the publishers realised that the book was selling and ordered a reprint. Whatever happened, Laura Reese has now gained the status of a “cult following” and her book has become a “cause celebre” of Erotica.
Topping from Below has a lurid product description; “An explosive, erotic thriller about one woman’s voyage into the heart of evil.” It’s a bold statement, but I guess it works and Laura takes up the theme in Panic Snap.
So what is this “heart of evil?”
The book opens in a court room. There is a trial, a woman is accused of murder and her guilt is assumed, but not yet announced.
While the woman awaits the jury’s verdict, we hear her story.
Fifteen years ago, the woman was found beaten, mutilated beyond recognition and close to death. Slowly, she recovers, helped by ground breaking surgical procedures and intense physical therapy.
The body can, and has recovered, whereas the mind has a mind of its own. And the traumatic events of that morning so long ago, have erased her memory. She does not know who she is; she has no memory of the attack, or her attacker. She has no memory of her childhood or her parents.
She takes the name of Carly Tyler. But who is she really?
Her broken face is healed but she does not recognise herself. The surgeons have done their best, but it is unlikely that anyone who knew her before will know her now.
A just by chance feature in a magazine precipitates a compulsion; a resonance. A photograph of a powerful man suggests a link to her past. The name of his vineyard is in Napa Valley wine country, Byblos; that is where she must go.
A woman’s search for her identity drives the novel – hand in hand with sexual obsession.
Those of you who have read Laura’s previous book will guess that they are in for some explicit bdsm. Those of you who haven’t read Topping From Below – well Panic Snap is not for the faint hearted. Dominance and submission; a Dominant who demands total obedience, even to the point of exerting control over bodily functions. The Bestiality that featured so strongly in Topping From Below, may be absent, but Laura Reese has no fear of breaking through boundaries, shattering Taboos. She uses the character of Carly to demonstrate the psychological dimension of the true submissive. Like the character, of Nora in Topping, Carly bears no shame, no guilt at the depravities her Dominant inflicts upon her; rather she embraces them with mere curiosity as to how far he will push her, and how far down the road she will go.
Laura Reese is a writer with an instinct for precision. Her characterisation is superb; her delineation of scenery is meticulous. She could almost be writing staging instructions for a theatrical adaptation. She writes at a steady, even pace from the description of a room, a vista, food that Carly has prepared for dinner, to the flowers in the magical garden growing alongside herbs and vegetables.
All is coloured to add to an atmosphere, sometimes of tranquility, sometimes evoking fear.
But Panic Snap is an erotic novel – so let’s get on with the sex. Throughout the book the pace never changes; Laura Reese will devote pages to a particular sex act, yet she is never crude. If you are expecting the immediacy of Pornography, you won’t get it – yet in a bizarre twist, the sensations, the images and the emotions here lend themselves so easily to Porn.
So let’s take a look at the Rimming scene --surely, if ever a fetish screamed out for a reader’s arousal, this is it. Check it out – is it Pornographic? Is it erotic?
“I started to reproach her, but then felt her tongue once more on my body, sliding over my buttocks. She kissed every space of flesh, made my skin ripple with anticipation, then spread my buttocks and ran her tongue down the crack in the middle, slowly, and, just as slowly, came back up again. I let out my breath, a lust-felt sigh. Once more her tongue made the descent down the divide, as slow as a slimy snail, lingering, lingering, taking her time, until she reached my asshole – Satan’s hole, she whimsically called it, the dark, winking eye of evil. This time she didn’t pass it over, but lapped at it as if she were an animal, licking it over and over, like a dog tonguing a wound. She caressed my testicles with one hand, the other still spreading my buttocks, then left my balls to reach down and pull on my penis, her tongue still lapping. Her hand slid smoothly on my cock – she must’ve used spit to moisten it – as she tongued my asshole.
“I murmured my approval, then settled down on my elbows and let her continue. She circled the hole with her tongue, wetting it, massaging it, the most hidden part of my body – ‘it’s the brown pit of everything forbidden,’ she once said with a smile – then she pushed her tongue inside as if it were a worm, wiggling its way home.”
And at the conclusion of the Rimming chapter;
“I feel the desire in him, the slight tremble of his flesh, and this makes me work harder, sliding my tongue in farther, feeding the grasping, sloe-eyed hole, and it comes to me then, this resonance of something long forgotten: a renascent passion to please. My response is visceral and unbidden, too complicated for words. I lick and suck him, shove my tongue in his bowels, a vortex pulling me in, while my mind spins. I feel transported to someplace dark and crepuscular, to a feral world where ancient passions hold sway. I keep my tongue inside him, moving, tasting, pushing for lower depths. I am an adjunct in this sex, a mere appurtenance to another, and even as I tongue him deeper, willingly now, needing more of him, even as I do this a distant tocsin rumbles in my brain, sounding the perils. I’m on precarious ground here, traversing the slippery scarps of James’ scree-ridden soul.”
Writers and readers of the Erotica genre talk a lot about ‘the final Taboo,’ well, I do anyway. What Carly is doing is fascinating to her and to us, the reader. She is going against everything we’ve ever been taught, going right back to when we were babies – ‘it’s a dirty place, no, no, do not touch it – wash your hands, flush away all signs of it…’ And where will she go from here? Full blown Coprophilia? Probably, you can sense her carnal need in the paragraph above. Laura Reese does not prevaricate about what is going on here – there’s no innuendo – no clever metaphor to dilute and sanitise. Carly is sliding into James’ anus with her tongue -- higher and higher up she goes. If his bowel chooses that moment to empty – well, so be it…
From Laura Reese’s keyboard we learn that sexual pleasure, even, perhaps especially, Taboo sexual pleasure, has integrity in both giving and receiving when it comes from the heart. Porn does not talk about feelings – the description of this fetish that could easily draw on the dirt and grime of Porn, becomes a tantalizing tale, worthy of Scheherazade herself. When Carly learns what her sexual partner really wants of her, there is rhythm and pace – a breathless, lyrical placing of words. There is real love in these pages. It’s there, in the subtext. And the reader is a Voyeur, we are absolutely present in this Rimming scene, we are there, watching, as her tongue slides and intrudes.
I do not understand why Panic Snap has provoked so many negative reviews on Amazon, especially Amazon U.S. The main complaint runs along the lines of – ‘Laura Reese has not moved on from her theme of charismatic, sexually controlling men.’ In other words, she is telling the same tale – the tale that she told in her previous book. I don’t think that she is repeating herself at all – certainly, Panic Snap features Sadomasochism at its most extreme at its centre, as does Topping From Below. Both books share a dynamic Dominant with a bizarre sexual magnetism and in both books no one does anything they don’t want to do.
Writers return to the same themes over and over again. Only when they have written it out – only when they have dealt with it, will they leave it alone. Laura Reese has risen to a mighty challenge in Panic Snap – and who knows why she chose the theme of Sadomasochism? Might as well ask why did I choose to read it? And you will probably read it too – why? Because it’s forbidden? Because it tantalizes? Maybe that is why Laura Reese has delved into it – or maybe she just wanted to see if she could, once again, write the Taboo – the forbidden.
But as I say, who knows, and does it really have to matter?
Imagine what those same complaining readers would have said if Laura Reese’s follow up to Topping From Below and been just a plain old murder mystery – with no sex? They would have been furious – that would have been a good reason for a negative review.
So, not only was I pleasantly surprised and ordered the book immediately, but I was delighted to discover that Topping From Below is back in print! Why it ever went out of print I’ll never understand; I can only surmise that a lot of people, were doing as I had, and ordered their hard copy of the book, still from Amazon, but via the independent sellers. (And, that btw is a cool way to negotiate at Amazon. The books are often next to nothing -- all you pay is for mailing and the books, unless they say otherwise, are near perfect.) But I digress, I’m supposing that the publishers realised that the book was selling and ordered a reprint. Whatever happened, Laura Reese has now gained the status of a “cult following” and her book has become a “cause celebre” of Erotica.
Topping from Below has a lurid product description; “An explosive, erotic thriller about one woman’s voyage into the heart of evil.” It’s a bold statement, but I guess it works and Laura takes up the theme in Panic Snap.
So what is this “heart of evil?”
The book opens in a court room. There is a trial, a woman is accused of murder and her guilt is assumed, but not yet announced.
While the woman awaits the jury’s verdict, we hear her story.
Fifteen years ago, the woman was found beaten, mutilated beyond recognition and close to death. Slowly, she recovers, helped by ground breaking surgical procedures and intense physical therapy.
The body can, and has recovered, whereas the mind has a mind of its own. And the traumatic events of that morning so long ago, have erased her memory. She does not know who she is; she has no memory of the attack, or her attacker. She has no memory of her childhood or her parents.
She takes the name of Carly Tyler. But who is she really?
Her broken face is healed but she does not recognise herself. The surgeons have done their best, but it is unlikely that anyone who knew her before will know her now.
A just by chance feature in a magazine precipitates a compulsion; a resonance. A photograph of a powerful man suggests a link to her past. The name of his vineyard is in Napa Valley wine country, Byblos; that is where she must go.
A woman’s search for her identity drives the novel – hand in hand with sexual obsession.
Those of you who have read Laura’s previous book will guess that they are in for some explicit bdsm. Those of you who haven’t read Topping From Below – well Panic Snap is not for the faint hearted. Dominance and submission; a Dominant who demands total obedience, even to the point of exerting control over bodily functions. The Bestiality that featured so strongly in Topping From Below, may be absent, but Laura Reese has no fear of breaking through boundaries, shattering Taboos. She uses the character of Carly to demonstrate the psychological dimension of the true submissive. Like the character, of Nora in Topping, Carly bears no shame, no guilt at the depravities her Dominant inflicts upon her; rather she embraces them with mere curiosity as to how far he will push her, and how far down the road she will go.
Laura Reese is a writer with an instinct for precision. Her characterisation is superb; her delineation of scenery is meticulous. She could almost be writing staging instructions for a theatrical adaptation. She writes at a steady, even pace from the description of a room, a vista, food that Carly has prepared for dinner, to the flowers in the magical garden growing alongside herbs and vegetables.
All is coloured to add to an atmosphere, sometimes of tranquility, sometimes evoking fear.
But Panic Snap is an erotic novel – so let’s get on with the sex. Throughout the book the pace never changes; Laura Reese will devote pages to a particular sex act, yet she is never crude. If you are expecting the immediacy of Pornography, you won’t get it – yet in a bizarre twist, the sensations, the images and the emotions here lend themselves so easily to Porn.
So let’s take a look at the Rimming scene --surely, if ever a fetish screamed out for a reader’s arousal, this is it. Check it out – is it Pornographic? Is it erotic?
“I started to reproach her, but then felt her tongue once more on my body, sliding over my buttocks. She kissed every space of flesh, made my skin ripple with anticipation, then spread my buttocks and ran her tongue down the crack in the middle, slowly, and, just as slowly, came back up again. I let out my breath, a lust-felt sigh. Once more her tongue made the descent down the divide, as slow as a slimy snail, lingering, lingering, taking her time, until she reached my asshole – Satan’s hole, she whimsically called it, the dark, winking eye of evil. This time she didn’t pass it over, but lapped at it as if she were an animal, licking it over and over, like a dog tonguing a wound. She caressed my testicles with one hand, the other still spreading my buttocks, then left my balls to reach down and pull on my penis, her tongue still lapping. Her hand slid smoothly on my cock – she must’ve used spit to moisten it – as she tongued my asshole.
“I murmured my approval, then settled down on my elbows and let her continue. She circled the hole with her tongue, wetting it, massaging it, the most hidden part of my body – ‘it’s the brown pit of everything forbidden,’ she once said with a smile – then she pushed her tongue inside as if it were a worm, wiggling its way home.”
And at the conclusion of the Rimming chapter;
“I feel the desire in him, the slight tremble of his flesh, and this makes me work harder, sliding my tongue in farther, feeding the grasping, sloe-eyed hole, and it comes to me then, this resonance of something long forgotten: a renascent passion to please. My response is visceral and unbidden, too complicated for words. I lick and suck him, shove my tongue in his bowels, a vortex pulling me in, while my mind spins. I feel transported to someplace dark and crepuscular, to a feral world where ancient passions hold sway. I keep my tongue inside him, moving, tasting, pushing for lower depths. I am an adjunct in this sex, a mere appurtenance to another, and even as I tongue him deeper, willingly now, needing more of him, even as I do this a distant tocsin rumbles in my brain, sounding the perils. I’m on precarious ground here, traversing the slippery scarps of James’ scree-ridden soul.”
Writers and readers of the Erotica genre talk a lot about ‘the final Taboo,’ well, I do anyway. What Carly is doing is fascinating to her and to us, the reader. She is going against everything we’ve ever been taught, going right back to when we were babies – ‘it’s a dirty place, no, no, do not touch it – wash your hands, flush away all signs of it…’ And where will she go from here? Full blown Coprophilia? Probably, you can sense her carnal need in the paragraph above. Laura Reese does not prevaricate about what is going on here – there’s no innuendo – no clever metaphor to dilute and sanitise. Carly is sliding into James’ anus with her tongue -- higher and higher up she goes. If his bowel chooses that moment to empty – well, so be it…
From Laura Reese’s keyboard we learn that sexual pleasure, even, perhaps especially, Taboo sexual pleasure, has integrity in both giving and receiving when it comes from the heart. Porn does not talk about feelings – the description of this fetish that could easily draw on the dirt and grime of Porn, becomes a tantalizing tale, worthy of Scheherazade herself. When Carly learns what her sexual partner really wants of her, there is rhythm and pace – a breathless, lyrical placing of words. There is real love in these pages. It’s there, in the subtext. And the reader is a Voyeur, we are absolutely present in this Rimming scene, we are there, watching, as her tongue slides and intrudes.
I do not understand why Panic Snap has provoked so many negative reviews on Amazon, especially Amazon U.S. The main complaint runs along the lines of – ‘Laura Reese has not moved on from her theme of charismatic, sexually controlling men.’ In other words, she is telling the same tale – the tale that she told in her previous book. I don’t think that she is repeating herself at all – certainly, Panic Snap features Sadomasochism at its most extreme at its centre, as does Topping From Below. Both books share a dynamic Dominant with a bizarre sexual magnetism and in both books no one does anything they don’t want to do.
Writers return to the same themes over and over again. Only when they have written it out – only when they have dealt with it, will they leave it alone. Laura Reese has risen to a mighty challenge in Panic Snap – and who knows why she chose the theme of Sadomasochism? Might as well ask why did I choose to read it? And you will probably read it too – why? Because it’s forbidden? Because it tantalizes? Maybe that is why Laura Reese has delved into it – or maybe she just wanted to see if she could, once again, write the Taboo – the forbidden.
But as I say, who knows, and does it really have to matter?
Imagine what those same complaining readers would have said if Laura Reese’s follow up to Topping From Below and been just a plain old murder mystery – with no sex? They would have been furious – that would have been a good reason for a negative review.
January 25, 2013
DNF. There are some things that are so disturbing that you shouldn't let them pollute your brain. This is one of them. WTF. I've read and enjoyed some pretty risky bdsm erotica books. This is absolutely not enjoyable. There was nothing sexy about the sick control he had over her, the things he did and the things he wanted her to do. I very rarely quit reading a book, but I simply could not finish this without making myself sick.
August 30, 2012
This book was absolutely gross. I hated how the author would get you going and then all of a sudden something vile and disgusting happens. This book is a total tease and many parts of the book made me want to vomit. I would not recommend reading this book if you are easily grossed out. In fact, I wouldn't recommend this book at all.
April 25, 2013
Wow - what an unusual book... I had a love/hate relationship with it (not unlike the main characters' relationship :) )... I must admit that i am NOT a fan of dark erotica, but other than that - the plot was really interesting and suspensful... This is the first book I read by this author and the beginning sucked me in! Up until a half way through the book, I kept thinking "5*, 5*, 5*" and then all the nastiness began, along with the mystery kind of going downhill...
The sex stuff though - gross! Scalding water, asphyxiation, branding, whipping, enemas, animals - ew ew ew ew ew !!! I am utterly stunned that someone could find this hot! (i.e. the guy&girl in the book clearly did, as did some of the readers - but "to each his own", who am I to judge?!) A few of the sex scenes started to make me physically sick, so I had to keep skipping paragraphs. Also, there were some extremely repetitive descriptions - for example, the author mentions James being "tanned and with sun bleached hair due to working in the vinery" at least 6 times! WE KNOW!
How does this book still get my 3* even with all this?? Well - I really liked the unusual mystery and kept hoping for a super surprise/twist ending....
The ending was somewhat anti-climactic, though (ha-ha get it??:) ). As I was suspecting all along -
Overall, excellent mystery (I love amnesia plots!), nasty sex (the author really crossed some boundaries here that should NEVER have been crossed), too many repetitive descriptions, and the ending was rushed, hence the resolution not quite satisfactory!
The sex stuff though - gross! Scalding water, asphyxiation, branding, whipping, enemas, animals - ew ew ew ew ew !!! I am utterly stunned that someone could find this hot! (i.e. the guy&girl in the book clearly did, as did some of the readers - but "to each his own", who am I to judge?!) A few of the sex scenes started to make me physically sick, so I had to keep skipping paragraphs. Also, there were some extremely repetitive descriptions - for example, the author mentions James being "tanned and with sun bleached hair due to working in the vinery" at least 6 times! WE KNOW!
How does this book still get my 3* even with all this?? Well - I really liked the unusual mystery and kept hoping for a super surprise/twist ending....
The ending was somewhat anti-climactic, though (ha-ha get it??:) ). As I was suspecting all along -
Overall, excellent mystery (I love amnesia plots!), nasty sex (the author really crossed some boundaries here that should NEVER have been crossed), too many repetitive descriptions, and the ending was rushed, hence the resolution not quite satisfactory!
August 13, 2012
There was something about Panic Snap that seemed vaguely familiar. And, by "vaguely", I mean extremely familiar. Almost like I read the exact same thing before. Then I remembered, it was called Topping From Below and I finished reading it a few days ago.
It was very similar: the protagonist, a supposedly strong willed modern woman, is on a mission of revenge to find out the truth about the murder that closely affected her. In Panic Snap, it was the protagonist own attempted murder that occured 15 years prior to the story taken place. The result, besides from the coma and retrograde amnesia, was an entire new apperance where she could go and confront the gulity party incognito as it were.
Along the way, things do not go as planned and the gulity party finds out her true identity but it's okay because the gulity party will give her all the information she wants about past for absolute submission to him. Sadomaschism shenagians ensued.
It was amazing how both novels by Reese were so similar to one another. In fact, Panic Snap could have been called Topping from Below 2: Napa Valley. Seriously. Once again, it was well written and probably will make Lifetime a bunch of money one day when it becomes a Saturday night movie.
However, it was so gross! I am not just talking about the very graphic sex scenes (I will never look at the word 'jut' the same way again), I am talking about the S&M things. There were catherers and enema and breast pumps and lambs and eww! Something tells me Reese knew that both her stories were sounding a little too alike and wanted to push the envelope even more.
Just like with Topping From Below, she went way too far and maybe that is what she meant to do. With everything in life, S&M has been romanticized in recent years especially with the Shades of Grey trilogy. However, this is a very hard, unflinching, and very gross light of S&M and bondage. Sure, if you're the dominant, you have it made. But if you're submissive, kiss your rights away, it can be sold to the highest bidder.
It was very similar: the protagonist, a supposedly strong willed modern woman, is on a mission of revenge to find out the truth about the murder that closely affected her. In Panic Snap, it was the protagonist own attempted murder that occured 15 years prior to the story taken place. The result, besides from the coma and retrograde amnesia, was an entire new apperance where she could go and confront the gulity party incognito as it were.
Along the way, things do not go as planned and the gulity party finds out her true identity but it's okay because the gulity party will give her all the information she wants about past for absolute submission to him. Sadomaschism shenagians ensued.
It was amazing how both novels by Reese were so similar to one another. In fact, Panic Snap could have been called Topping from Below 2: Napa Valley. Seriously. Once again, it was well written and probably will make Lifetime a bunch of money one day when it becomes a Saturday night movie.
However, it was so gross! I am not just talking about the very graphic sex scenes (I will never look at the word 'jut' the same way again), I am talking about the S&M things. There were catherers and enema and breast pumps and lambs and eww! Something tells me Reese knew that both her stories were sounding a little too alike and wanted to push the envelope even more.
Just like with Topping From Below, she went way too far and maybe that is what she meant to do. With everything in life, S&M has been romanticized in recent years especially with the Shades of Grey trilogy. However, this is a very hard, unflinching, and very gross light of S&M and bondage. Sure, if you're the dominant, you have it made. But if you're submissive, kiss your rights away, it can be sold to the highest bidder.
July 13, 2011
While this story is based around a couple in a BDSM relationship it is also very much a mystery... a "who done it" story. I really liked this book. The writing was good, the story was interesting and kept you wanting to read. The only problem I had was that there was a lot of descriptive detail throughout the book, especially in the beginning. I like to have the setting described for me but not so much that my attention starts to drift elsewhere. And some of the descriptions were repetitive. For instance - we get a very thourough description of the vineyards as Carly is driving into town, then again as she drives down the long driveway, then again as she gets out of the car and so on. And sometimes the descriptions would be the same only stated slightly different, and over and over we had to read about how James' skin is slightly tanned from time outdoors, or that his hair is blonder because it is sun bleached. Yes, we still remember that description from the last time you used it. But really, overall these complaints are small. The book is good and interesting. For those who may be concerned about the BDSM part - in my opinion it wasn't that extreme. This book doesn't involve a lot of major humiliation which is what I have difficulty reading. Mostly it's whipping, some bondage. The most degrading things (to me) were having her eat from a dog dish, but even that was minor and a one time event. Then there was a situation involving urine which I cringed at, but again, it wasn't that bad compaired to what I've read in other books. But just be aware that these items are present in this story. And, btw, you will be wondering all through the book who done it - and you will be surprised by the ending. I was.
February 2, 2014
Wow where to begin, This book was bloody brilliant and very similar to topping from below.
Again I asked why someone would put themselves through all of this if they didn't need to and I jumped between my ideas for the ending. Honestly if you loved topping from below you'll love this one (IMO its better).
so why I hear your ask did I only give it 4 stars. Well I thought long and hard about writing this but feel I have to be 100% honestly with this review, I borrowed this book there is no way in these times can I afford to pay £10 for a e-book (more for a real book) and I feel for that I must mark it down...I understand fully that authors need to earn their keep also but sorry £10 for something I'll never real own (in my home etc) is way over the top.
Again I asked why someone would put themselves through all of this if they didn't need to and I jumped between my ideas for the ending. Honestly if you loved topping from below you'll love this one (IMO its better).
so why I hear your ask did I only give it 4 stars. Well I thought long and hard about writing this but feel I have to be 100% honestly with this review, I borrowed this book there is no way in these times can I afford to pay £10 for a e-book (more for a real book) and I feel for that I must mark it down...I understand fully that authors need to earn their keep also but sorry £10 for something I'll never real own (in my home etc) is way over the top.
August 6, 2013
Bu yazarda nasıl bir hayal gücü var arkadaş.. Diğer kitabında da acayip acayip şeyler doluydu bunda da... Yalnız bu kitap keşke farklı bitseydi dedim, bazı şeyleri anlamaya başladıktan sonra sonunun nereye gideceğini bile bile yine de okuduklarımdan hayal kırıklığına uğradım... Beklenmedik bir şekilde bitseydi keşke(yani benim beklediğim şekilde :D :D) Tüm sapkınlıklarına, manyaklıklarına ve dengesizliklerine rağmen adama kanım ısındı itiraf ediyorum :D Bende de var bi manyaklık demek ki :D Neysee... Aslında üç yıldız verecektim ama daha önce de dediğim gibi bu kadın yazdıklarıyla beni germeyi baya iyi başarıyor, bunun hatırına.. Ehh kaç verdiğim görülüyor :D
July 16, 2014
With nods to Pygmalion, Turn of the Screw, Rebecca, and War of the Roses (1981 novel), Panic Snap is a twisted tale of obsession confused with love. It's as compulsively readable as it is disturbing.
Carly and James hit every high ick-factor fetish on the top ten checklist. Their story isn't for Pollyannas.
Carly and James hit every high ick-factor fetish on the top ten checklist. Their story isn't for Pollyannas.
September 6, 2014
Not sure if the author is writing an erotic, BDSM book or a mystery. It is OK because the author writes better than some of the others that are out ther, and she does tell a multi-level story. But it could be better.
I picked it up outside a used bookstore on the dollar table some years back. Oh well-only a dollar.
I picked it up outside a used bookstore on the dollar table some years back. Oh well-only a dollar.
September 5, 2012
Horrible book. Very vile and disgusting. Let's just say I never want a man like James McGuane. Gross.....
January 3, 2023
I picked this book up at The Strand Bookstore in New York City on a recent trip. I had recently read the author's other book, Topping from Below, and found it disturbing and compelling and highly readable. I was hoping for more of the same psychological pull in this novel.
Here, I didn't find any of the characters or their motivations believable or well-analyzed. I was still pulled along by wanting to know what was going to happen, but the book lacked the can't-look-away feel that made the first book so compelling.
Here, I didn't find any of the characters or their motivations believable or well-analyzed. I was still pulled along by wanting to know what was going to happen, but the book lacked the can't-look-away feel that made the first book so compelling.
October 26, 2010
I was very impressed with this book, after having read Topping from Below and being told this book was exactly the same, I was relieved to have enjoyed it so much.
Yes, the story is "similar" to TFB- with the heroine out to get the baddie (in her eyses, at least). The setting for Panic Snap is the Napa Valley vineyards and I related to some of the scenes as I too have worked in vineyards.
Carly is an exceptional cook and some of the meals describes made my mouth water. I felt very comfortable reading about her life there.
Then, of course we have the baddie, who Carly thinks may have tried to kill her years ago, but as she has amnesia, she is not really sure.They have a love/hate/love sort of relationship. He however, is very cold and even though she goes to great lengths to describe what she finds appealing about him, he has few redeeming qualities.
Topping from Below had an unusual ending and I am pleased to say so does Panic Snap. There are elements of BDSM and some "elements" I have never read about before- so that was a big plus from me.
I couldn't read for the next day or so as I had to let this sink in.
Recommended if you aren't easily shocked, and don't necessarily want a HEA.
Yes, the story is "similar" to TFB- with the heroine out to get the baddie (in her eyses, at least). The setting for Panic Snap is the Napa Valley vineyards and I related to some of the scenes as I too have worked in vineyards.
Carly is an exceptional cook and some of the meals describes made my mouth water. I felt very comfortable reading about her life there.
Then, of course we have the baddie, who Carly thinks may have tried to kill her years ago, but as she has amnesia, she is not really sure.They have a love/hate/love sort of relationship. He however, is very cold and even though she goes to great lengths to describe what she finds appealing about him, he has few redeeming qualities.
Topping from Below had an unusual ending and I am pleased to say so does Panic Snap. There are elements of BDSM and some "elements" I have never read about before- so that was a big plus from me.
I couldn't read for the next day or so as I had to let this sink in.
Recommended if you aren't easily shocked, and don't necessarily want a HEA.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 25, 2013
The description of this book on my library's online catalog did not reveal the erotic nature of the book. I was a bit astonished by the graphic nature of the sexual relationship, then really astonished by some of the sexual acts. I don't normally consider myself a prude, but some of this makes me rethink my self classification!
The story line was excellent, and the ending left me with my mouth literally hanging open. I was sympathetic to Carly, but would also yell at her while listening to the audio. It is an exploration of will, on so many levels, and fascinating.
I would recommend it, with a caveat that if you don't appreciate or enjoy graphic sex you will probably not enjoy the book. I was uncomfortable in certain places, but the storyline had me captivated and I wanted to see it through.
The story line was excellent, and the ending left me with my mouth literally hanging open. I was sympathetic to Carly, but would also yell at her while listening to the audio. It is an exploration of will, on so many levels, and fascinating.
I would recommend it, with a caveat that if you don't appreciate or enjoy graphic sex you will probably not enjoy the book. I was uncomfortable in certain places, but the storyline had me captivated and I wanted to see it through.
October 17, 2012
Overall I think this book was written very poorly. I enjoyed the plot of the story but I would have liked to dive deeper into it. It seemed as if the author was more focused on including as much erotic scenes in as she possibly could. So much in fact that it 100% overpowered the plot. This book had the potential to be really good, the characters were interesting and the story was good but it was ruined by too much erotica. I was actually a bit shocked at the extent of it. This is not a book for the conservative reader. It wasvas if the majority of the plot/ climax was quickly crammed into the last couple chapters. I found at times it was almost difficult to read due to the vivid BDSM scenes. Not a book I would be likely to recommend to another reader.
March 14, 2015
The heroine is seeking justice. Carly has lost her memory but believes she has finally found the place that can give her the answers to what happened to her. James and Carly are kinky and some parts are exciting but I just think it goes a little too far. I am on the fence about this book.
Each time the heroine thinks she is strong but is suffering from complexes of grandeur if she thinks that the pursuit of justice is everything. I would not recommend this.
This is the second book I have read by this author and I have not liked either book. The author is a female but writes like someone who does not like woman or respect the power of woman.
Each time the heroine thinks she is strong but is suffering from complexes of grandeur if she thinks that the pursuit of justice is everything. I would not recommend this.
This is the second book I have read by this author and I have not liked either book. The author is a female but writes like someone who does not like woman or respect the power of woman.
January 7, 2023
Bookray
This second book is nowhere near as good as the first, in my opinion. It had potential, but never really got off the ground. The only really in-depth analysis, rather than being of the characters or their psychological motivations perhaps, were technical descriptions of procedures which frankly I could live without knowing that much about. I failed to recognize any redeeming features in the hero, and pure sadism palls pretty quickly, I think. I'm glad to have read it as I would have otherwise remained curious about it.
This second book is nowhere near as good as the first, in my opinion. It had potential, but never really got off the ground. The only really in-depth analysis, rather than being of the characters or their psychological motivations perhaps, were technical descriptions of procedures which frankly I could live without knowing that much about. I failed to recognize any redeeming features in the hero, and pure sadism palls pretty quickly, I think. I'm glad to have read it as I would have otherwise remained curious about it.
December 6, 2016
How dare people feel they were cheated reading this master piece?
Yes there's a bit of similarly between Topping From Below and Panic Snap "submitting to any desire in order to have answers to what happened+ kind of similar sex scenes here and there" but I absolutely LOVED IT.
The twists are brilliant.
The plot is fanfuckingtastic.
Read it in 24 hours, couldn't put it down.
Though I expected it to be darker based on other reviews but I understand the levels of darkness vary from a reader to another.
I hated the ending with passion!!!! I need a few days to get over this.
5+
Yes there's a bit of similarly between Topping From Below and Panic Snap "submitting to any desire in order to have answers to what happened+ kind of similar sex scenes here and there" but I absolutely LOVED IT.
The twists are brilliant.
The plot is fanfuckingtastic.
Read it in 24 hours, couldn't put it down.
Though I expected it to be darker based on other reviews but I understand the levels of darkness vary from a reader to another.
I hated the ending with passion!!!! I need a few days to get over this.
5+
July 5, 2010
What can I say about this book?...it was dirty, raunchy, full of S&M explicit sex acts, with an underlying mystery plot. I'd be embarrassed to recommend this book because it should be in the pornography section! LOL
Not really worth reading unless you are curious! This book has been passed around my friends who just wanted it out of their house, but said "you gotta read this and tell me what you think!" hahaha...I am ashamed to say that I passed it on to my parents!!! LOL
Not really worth reading unless you are curious! This book has been passed around my friends who just wanted it out of their house, but said "you gotta read this and tell me what you think!" hahaha...I am ashamed to say that I passed it on to my parents!!! LOL
August 8, 2013
I read this story a long time ago and can still remember it very well. This book was awesome. I really enjoyed to character development and the sense of suspense. I enjoyed the dominance aspect of the book and especially the hot sexual scenes. I recently sought out this book to see what other books the author has written. I want to read Laura Reese books to see if they will catch my attention like this one has!
January 10, 2017
This is one of my favorite books of all time. It's completely disgusting and disturbing in the best way possible. It raises the bar incredibly high. The Fifty Shades series is pathetic and horribly written in comparison. If you want a book that will turn you on and repulse you at the same time, this is it! I have passed it on to every book loving adult I know...from my 25 year old sister to my 80 year old grandma.
October 5, 2015
Mystery- good. It was the only reason I kept reading.
The Sex- don't read this if you are uncomfortable with really explicit sex by a psychopath. I skipped over quite a few scenes because I was uncomfortable. I like erotica, but this wasn't erotic it was a dark read that makes you want to go sanitize your skin.
The ending was good and twisty, just beware of all the ick!
The Sex- don't read this if you are uncomfortable with really explicit sex by a psychopath. I skipped over quite a few scenes because I was uncomfortable. I like erotica, but this wasn't erotic it was a dark read that makes you want to go sanitize your skin.
The ending was good and twisty, just beware of all the ick!
May 4, 2018
Total crap. Recommended by a friend and before I started I asked him if it was like 50 Shades of Grey, which was also crap. He said no. I don't think he knows what real BDSM is if he thinks this is different, not to mention how similar it is. Maybe this is where E.L. James got her ideas from. Read The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty or Kushiel's Dart instead.
December 23, 2016
If it has one star I liked it a lot
If it has two stars I liked it a lot and would recommend it
If it has three stars I really really liked it a lot
If it has four stars I insist you read it
If it has five stars it was life changing
If it has two stars I liked it a lot and would recommend it
If it has three stars I really really liked it a lot
If it has four stars I insist you read it
If it has five stars it was life changing
September 7, 2012
When I started reading this, I was hoping for some steamy, kinkiness but the characters did nothing for me. They were all unlikable and boring. I just couldn't get into the story or the characters.
June 11, 2016
A tormented erotic trip
This was a good read. Defiantly not for the conservative reader. The author does a good job of getting into the characters mind and relaying the travesty,torment, and turmoil going on inside. A nice twist at the end.
This was a good read. Defiantly not for the conservative reader. The author does a good job of getting into the characters mind and relaying the travesty,torment, and turmoil going on inside. A nice twist at the end.
October 8, 2017
This was a really good book. Wasn't expecting it to be so detailed, but hey, what can I say? Lol this book was hard to put down. The only downfall is that it has an ending that you wouldn't expect! Not so sure if I'm really wanting to read the second one to it..
July 24, 2010
Not as good as the first, but equally disturbing.
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