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The Disciplinarian #1
Dr. Discipline
Dr. Alden Fairfax, a serious and stern Englishman, has doctorates in both medieval literature and psychology. He also has a thriving practice in Chicago as a professional disciplinarian. His life is orderly and conventional, perhaps even a bit stuffy, but then he meets his outgoing young neighbor and discovers there may be another side to things.
Carrie Weston is a thoroughly modern young woman who comes away from her accidental meeting with Dr. Fairfax convinced he’s an admittedly handsome but kind of scary throwback to another time. She can’t quite get him out of her mind, though, and after several more encounters, a relationship starts to grow.
They’re each fascinated by the other, but can an older man who believes discipline is essential and a younger woman who grew up in a go-with-the-flow home find common ground? Is simple fascination enough?
This is book one in The Disciplinarian series and can be enjoyed independently.
Publisher’s Note: This modern day age-gap romance is intended for adults only and contains elements of sensual scenes, power exchange and a happily ever after.
Carrie Weston is a thoroughly modern young woman who comes away from her accidental meeting with Dr. Fairfax convinced he’s an admittedly handsome but kind of scary throwback to another time. She can’t quite get him out of her mind, though, and after several more encounters, a relationship starts to grow.
They’re each fascinated by the other, but can an older man who believes discipline is essential and a younger woman who grew up in a go-with-the-flow home find common ground? Is simple fascination enough?
This is book one in The Disciplinarian series and can be enjoyed independently.
Publisher’s Note: This modern day age-gap romance is intended for adults only and contains elements of sensual scenes, power exchange and a happily ever after.
222 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 11, 2022
49 people are currently reading
12 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 25, 2022
I rarely leave reviews on Amazon, but...
I was so appalled by the depiction of child abuse that I felt the need to warn others. The blurb makes this book sound like a hanky-spanky modern-day rom-com; nothing prepared me for the upsetting subject matter.
Alden is a professional disciplinarian (and embodies every single upper-class British stereotype there is) who regularly beats women (from what I can see, only women) who come to him for his services. That's consensual, so, okay. The problem is is that the memories that get fetishized are childhood incidents of being beaten by fathers or other male authority figures. The first is a little girl punished bare-bottomed with a hairbrush by her father when she tripped and broke a lamp (note the word "tripped" so it was an accident). Carrie has been carrying this memory with her for decades, meaning that even though the narrative claims that the memory isn't erotic, it is, since it opens Carrie up to Alden's "treatment." The second is a woman whose father strapped her to the point of welts, calling her "bad." The third was caned by a religious cult for her "wickedness." And there are many others. Throughout, the narrative positively luxuriates in all these re-creations of childhood physical and sexual abuse (the girls are naked or nearly). I'm not sure who these scenarios are supposed to turn on, but it wasn't me.
There are other problems: one woman is spanked to lose weight (so the book justifies society's fat-shaming); not once does Alden offer comfort to any of his clients, despite the physical, emotional, and mental ordeal they go through as they re-create their childhood traumas; not once does this supposedly well-trained and reputable psychologist refer to the myriad studies that show the profound harm that spanking does to children; and Carrie explicitly withdraws her consent at one point -- which he ignores (too bad she didn't report him to the police).
The author wrote the book in defense of discipline (just for women and children, mind you), but I wasn't convinced. In fact, I came away thinking that what the author has really written is a primer on child abuse. And since child abuse is a hard limit for me, this was a hard pass. Won't read this author again.
I did NOT receive a free copy of this book.
ETA: To the Amazon reviewer who swears "there is no evidence of abuse of any kind" in this book, here, err, is the evidence:
"Crack! Crack! Crack! The beating continued. He was silently counting to himself, because he knew that fifty lashes was a good amount for her—enough to feel similar to the brutal beatings she’d received as a child but not so many that she would collapse."
"Finally, late afternoon he had a regular client, Hetty Smythe, who had grown up in Australia in a strict, almost cult-like religious community where the members, especially the younger ones, were subjected to frequent canings. Because of Alden’s English upbringing, he was quite familiar with the use of the cane, which is why she had sought him out. Her over-active sense of guilt drove her to need periodic canings to pay for her ‘sins.’"
"she was staying with a little friend, and when the friend tripped over a lamp cord and pulled the lamp onto the floor where it shattered, her father, with no regard to the watching friend, took a hairbrush from a drawer and then pulled his daughter’s panties down, put her over his knee, and proceeded to spank her soundly."
So, uhm, yes, there are a lot of descriptions and memories of childhood abuse in this book.
ETA: I'm going to say this one more time for all the Arcsplainers referencing my reviews who don't bother to read them carefully: my objection is to the child abuse; if you think that's "power exchange," you are the one with the problem, not me.
I was so appalled by the depiction of child abuse that I felt the need to warn others. The blurb makes this book sound like a hanky-spanky modern-day rom-com; nothing prepared me for the upsetting subject matter.
Alden is a professional disciplinarian (and embodies every single upper-class British stereotype there is) who regularly beats women (from what I can see, only women) who come to him for his services. That's consensual, so, okay. The problem is is that the memories that get fetishized are childhood incidents of being beaten by fathers or other male authority figures. The first is a little girl punished bare-bottomed with a hairbrush by her father when she tripped and broke a lamp (note the word "tripped" so it was an accident). Carrie has been carrying this memory with her for decades, meaning that even though the narrative claims that the memory isn't erotic, it is, since it opens Carrie up to Alden's "treatment." The second is a woman whose father strapped her to the point of welts, calling her "bad." The third was caned by a religious cult for her "wickedness." And there are many others. Throughout, the narrative positively luxuriates in all these re-creations of childhood physical and sexual abuse (the girls are naked or nearly). I'm not sure who these scenarios are supposed to turn on, but it wasn't me.
There are other problems: one woman is spanked to lose weight (so the book justifies society's fat-shaming); not once does Alden offer comfort to any of his clients, despite the physical, emotional, and mental ordeal they go through as they re-create their childhood traumas; not once does this supposedly well-trained and reputable psychologist refer to the myriad studies that show the profound harm that spanking does to children; and Carrie explicitly withdraws her consent at one point -- which he ignores (too bad she didn't report him to the police).
The author wrote the book in defense of discipline (just for women and children, mind you), but I wasn't convinced. In fact, I came away thinking that what the author has really written is a primer on child abuse. And since child abuse is a hard limit for me, this was a hard pass. Won't read this author again.
I did NOT receive a free copy of this book.
ETA: To the Amazon reviewer who swears "there is no evidence of abuse of any kind" in this book, here, err, is the evidence:
"Crack! Crack! Crack! The beating continued. He was silently counting to himself, because he knew that fifty lashes was a good amount for her—enough to feel similar to the brutal beatings she’d received as a child but not so many that she would collapse."
"Finally, late afternoon he had a regular client, Hetty Smythe, who had grown up in Australia in a strict, almost cult-like religious community where the members, especially the younger ones, were subjected to frequent canings. Because of Alden’s English upbringing, he was quite familiar with the use of the cane, which is why she had sought him out. Her over-active sense of guilt drove her to need periodic canings to pay for her ‘sins.’"
"she was staying with a little friend, and when the friend tripped over a lamp cord and pulled the lamp onto the floor where it shattered, her father, with no regard to the watching friend, took a hairbrush from a drawer and then pulled his daughter’s panties down, put her over his knee, and proceeded to spank her soundly."
So, uhm, yes, there are a lot of descriptions and memories of childhood abuse in this book.
ETA: I'm going to say this one more time for all the Arcsplainers referencing my reviews who don't bother to read them carefully: my objection is to the child abuse; if you think that's "power exchange," you are the one with the problem, not me.
dont-want-to-read
September 16, 2022Fetishized childhood assaults/traumas
September 22, 2022
OPPOSITES ATTRACT—MAYBE THAT’S US
The story is the first in a new series by Laura Hart. The books in the series are ongoing stories, so they need to be read in their written order. The story mainly takes place in Chicago, Illinois, but will have a few scenes in other locations—including Austin, Texas, and London, England. The two main characters are Dr. Alden Fairfax, originally from England, and Carrie Weston.
The story’s plot will have Carrie receiving several pieces of mail for her neighbor across the road, Mr. Alden H. Fairfax. One piece of mail catches her attention because of the initials behind his name., CLC, PD. Carrie has a propensity to be rather nosey, so now she needs to know more about what those initials stand for. The opportunity will come for her to deliver the mail, and she finds him unique but even more mysterious that he lives alone in that huge house. It will also have Carrie doing a Google search to attempt to learn more about her elusive neighbor from England. While on a walk with her dog, she will pick up a piece of paper she assumes is trash off the ground—and that will open the door to Dr. Alden Fairfax and what he does.
The story was interesting and had plenty of mystery, angst, and a slow build on a new relationship that would eventually change to romance. The more Carrie learns about Alden, the more she is curious about his profession—a professional disciplinarian.
“There are more chapters to be written.”
“The one thing he knew was that he wanted more of her than just a kiss. He wanted to be with her completely.”
I liked the characters and that the story takes time for them to get to know each other, learn the different peculiarities, and eventually deepen the relationship. As with Ms. Hart’s books, intimacy is more implied than detailed. It does contain power exchange and discipline—but it is more the relationship between two people. As I mentioned in the beginning, this is the first book in this series, with the next book, The Gift of Discipline, released later. It will be a continuation of the story of Carrie and Alden.
“Her life too had been turned upside down.”
The story is the first in a new series by Laura Hart. The books in the series are ongoing stories, so they need to be read in their written order. The story mainly takes place in Chicago, Illinois, but will have a few scenes in other locations—including Austin, Texas, and London, England. The two main characters are Dr. Alden Fairfax, originally from England, and Carrie Weston.
The story’s plot will have Carrie receiving several pieces of mail for her neighbor across the road, Mr. Alden H. Fairfax. One piece of mail catches her attention because of the initials behind his name., CLC, PD. Carrie has a propensity to be rather nosey, so now she needs to know more about what those initials stand for. The opportunity will come for her to deliver the mail, and she finds him unique but even more mysterious that he lives alone in that huge house. It will also have Carrie doing a Google search to attempt to learn more about her elusive neighbor from England. While on a walk with her dog, she will pick up a piece of paper she assumes is trash off the ground—and that will open the door to Dr. Alden Fairfax and what he does.
The story was interesting and had plenty of mystery, angst, and a slow build on a new relationship that would eventually change to romance. The more Carrie learns about Alden, the more she is curious about his profession—a professional disciplinarian.
“There are more chapters to be written.”
“The one thing he knew was that he wanted more of her than just a kiss. He wanted to be with her completely.”
I liked the characters and that the story takes time for them to get to know each other, learn the different peculiarities, and eventually deepen the relationship. As with Ms. Hart’s books, intimacy is more implied than detailed. It does contain power exchange and discipline—but it is more the relationship between two people. As I mentioned in the beginning, this is the first book in this series, with the next book, The Gift of Discipline, released later. It will be a continuation of the story of Carrie and Alden.
“Her life too had been turned upside down.”
September 29, 2022
Dr. Discipline is the first book in the Disciplinarian series. Carrie and Alden are neighbors and are about as different as they can get. One free spirited, the other more disciplined, but they can’t quite resist the pull they feel towards the other. Will these opposites attract a future together, or will their differences be too much to overcome?
I really enjoyed reading about Carrie and Alden! I loved their journey to finding and accepting the love that they both were feeling, and how they needed to face their differences. Carrie was so curious and a tiny bit nosy, but I loved how she went with the flow and let her emotions guide her. She really let you know her opinion, too, which was refreshing that she didn’t just try to hide away from the uncomfortable topics. One aspect I found completely fascinating about this book was seeing the dichotomy between the romance that forms between Carrie and Alden compared to the professional relationships that Dr. Fairfax had with his clients. While spanking may have occurred with both, his manner was completely different. It was interesting to see both sides of his character. I thought he was a great match for Carrie, though, because he was steady, while she was emotional, she brought spontaneity to his structure, and their differences lead to a complimentary relationship. This book was fun to read and I am curious to see where the next book will bring this couple!
I really enjoyed reading about Carrie and Alden! I loved their journey to finding and accepting the love that they both were feeling, and how they needed to face their differences. Carrie was so curious and a tiny bit nosy, but I loved how she went with the flow and let her emotions guide her. She really let you know her opinion, too, which was refreshing that she didn’t just try to hide away from the uncomfortable topics. One aspect I found completely fascinating about this book was seeing the dichotomy between the romance that forms between Carrie and Alden compared to the professional relationships that Dr. Fairfax had with his clients. While spanking may have occurred with both, his manner was completely different. It was interesting to see both sides of his character. I thought he was a great match for Carrie, though, because he was steady, while she was emotional, she brought spontaneity to his structure, and their differences lead to a complimentary relationship. This book was fun to read and I am curious to see where the next book will bring this couple!
September 22, 2022
An interesting story. Carrie is a bright woman, around 30 years old, working as a CPA in a firm in Chicago. Across the street from her home lives Alden, an English gentleman who is a professor in some obscure literary areas, as well as offering his services as a life coach and a professional disciplinarian. They meet, and at first she doesn’t like him at all, but as time passes a relationship develops that gradually becomes warmer and more passionate. She is light hearted, fun, sassy and intelligent; he is more serious but gradually loosens up because of her – and he fills a void for her, because she never had a father figure in her life. The story moves quickly, and the relationship develops in a logical way – even her interest in his activities as a disciplinarian, which leads to her interest in wondering about spanking, and ultimately to her first spanking. The book is part of a two book series, but it ends in a nice way and I look forward to reading the sequel, which will tell more about the life of these two people. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
December 28, 2022
This book is very interesting and well written that I love every single moment of reading it! When a young woman gets wrong mail set to her goes return it they both don’t realize their lives are about to change forever. This book has mystery and lots of sassy among other things that are really enjoyable to read! I personally felt like I could relate to and live through reading this book. There is a happy ending and I can’t wait to read more on this wonderful series so pick up this book and get stuck within the story just like I did the characters are amazing fun to get to know! I love this author work so much thank you 😊.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 24, 2022
This was a very captivating and enlightening story. I felt it was a little reserved for this type and style of book, with just a bit of flare every now and then. Which actually complimented the nuance of the storyline very nicely. Now, knowing there will be a second book, I am just brimming with excitement!.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 25, 2022
An interesting book, and easy to read. This is my first book by Laura Hart, and I will be back for more. I saw another review claiming abuse, and I have to say, power exchange is not for everyone. If you don't enjoy a good spanking, this is not the book for you. If, however, you do, come in, sit down and enjoy the read.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 27, 2022
Wonderful story
I really enjoyed this story. It is a wonderful story. I love the plot and the characters. Great author also.
I really enjoyed this story. It is a wonderful story. I love the plot and the characters. Great author also.
November 4, 2022
A different storyline
A totally unique and different story. Explains more about how people need motivation. And love is in the mix to add to the story.
A totally unique and different story. Explains more about how people need motivation. And love is in the mix to add to the story.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews