Review: Hot with a plot, a great "tutorial" for readers new to BDSM
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 19, 2012
This book bound me so tight that I tried to stop my life to keep reading it. I loved the open-mindedness of Gavin the detective, walking into a BDSM club to ask hard questions, yet being smart enough to hold onto sensitivity. I also liked that he was somewhat surprised and nervous to realize the things he saw there made him uncomfortable in an exciting way.As I said in the title of this review, this is a great little tutorial for those interested in learning more about BDSM from the point of view of a newbie. The information was fairly complete and accurate, and all within the confines of a budding romance.This would have been a 5-star read if the "who-dunnit" aspect had been stronger - I figured out fairly early who the killer was, and it was slightly disappointing that Gavin didn't put it together sooner. Although - to give some credit to the story - Gavin was highly preoccupied and submitting himself, literally, to a host of new experiences, all of which perhaps distracted him from the case.Even though I knew who the perp was, the story climax was incredibly well done. And the epilogue that detailed the aftermath cemented the characters as real people in my head - they didn't just saunter off into the dungeon for kinky sex the moment the bruises healed, and I appreciate the reality check.It was interesting that about 2/3 of the way through the book, it occurred to me that Gavin never once mentioned carrying a firearm. Most police protagonists mention their gun every other minute. This is a neutral point - didn't change my enjoyment of the book one way or another, just thought I'd mention it because it's an oddity for a serial-killer murder mystery.Don't expect a constant stream of erotica from this book, either. Except for the gay-BDSM sex, it reads very much like mainstream fiction, meaning there is equal weight between story and erotica - and I love, love, love books like this - with lots of story and lots of character development... with the additional pleasure of the author opening the bedroom door wide to let us in.I especially enjoyed Gavin's internal struggles, being in his POV as he felt and experienced discomfort both physically and emotionally.This was a great read.