Review: Intense and Powerful Dark Erotica
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 2, 2013
"I slid my hand into his, and in that moment -- a moment I instinctively recognized as a pivotal one -- I knew I'd succumbed."Just when I thought I couldn't hate Gage Channing anymore, I find that he is even more of a sick, sadistic s.o.b. in Enslaved.  I have read many dark erotica before, and Enslaved is one of the darkest.  This book is not for the faint of heart, and the note to readers should be taken seriously.  With that said, I loved it!  Enslaved became my master and I became its submissive until the last page, when this succubus finally gave me freedom from the angst that had gripped me with its sharp talons.Gage Channing of Channing Enterprises continues his torturous ways with Kayla Sutton, his employee.  Although previously confined to the privacy of his home, his harsh punishments to Kayla are now unleashed in the workplace behind a locked door.  Gage Channing must be Lucifer, himself, in human form.  My mind cannot fathom a human man being this evil and cruel.  What he has done to Kayla is beyond repulsive.  Gage is a master at cruelty more than a dominant sex partner.  I have never hated a hero before, but Gage Channing -- no matter how handsome and affluent -- is no hero.  He is the ultimate anti-hero.  I am truly slapping myself for almost falling for his hidden charm that was starting to surface.  Almost.  I just knew I would find some redeeming quality in the man who had been so sadistically cruel toward a woman in Kayla's fragile state.  No, there is nothing redeeming about Gage.  He is the spawn of Satan.  However....and that is a BIG however....there is a hidden reason for Gage's behavior and harsh punishments toward Kayla.Just when I thought his cruelty couldn't get any worse, BAM!  He takes everything I've ever believed and hoped about "bad boys being warm and fuzzy underneath" and stomps it into the ground.  You may think you can imagine the most torturous treatment of another human being, but you would be wrong.  Never did I dream that this sick s.o.b. could be so cruel.  He has power over the fate of a child...a sick toddler at death's door...and he abuses that power for the most evil plot.  He abuses his power once again to intentionally hurt Kayla and an innocent Ian, who made the mistake of embracing her.  Nothing more, just a simple embrace.  Yet, both Ian and Kayla pay the price for that mistake....as could Eve, Kayla's three-year old daughter with leukemia.  Generally speaking, when someone loses his/her temper, we know what to expect, as did Kayla when Gage would explode.  But that one time....just once...Gage didn't explode when he had every reason to do so."Gage's cool demeanor was more terrifying than his rage.  I wanted to turn and bolt for the door, but entertaining the notion of escape was an impossible temptation I couldn't succumb to."Kayla Sutton is a survivor, a mother, a friend....a submissive.  She is not a submissive of her own choosing.  She has been coerced into voluntary slavery after embezzling funds to cover medical treatment to save her dying daughter, Eve."I'd stolen from the devil himself in order to save her, and now I was paying the ultimate price..."I kept asking myself throughout Ultimatum (book #1 in The Devil's Kiss Trilogy) and Enslaved how could one woman carry so much emotional baggage, stress, and abuse and still go on living?  A lesser woman would have broken a long time ago, but Kayla is a mother.  She's a mother who will do anything to save her child.  Kayla doesn't relish her time with Gage.  He doesn't take care of her.  He doesn't shower her with gifts.  He is nothing but cruel to her, but he is providing medical treatment for her daughter, and that is all that matters to Kayla.  That alone gives her the strength to endure.  But Kayla starts to see something in Gage's eyes.  There's a glint in them that indicates he isn't as heartless as he seems, and she hasn't experienced a level of sensuality in years that she experiences with Gage.  His final goal is for Kayla to stay with him at the end of their contract.  She wants her freedom but is conflicted.  Part of her hates Gage with more passion that she can muster for what he has done to her, and the other part of her wants Gage for how he makes her feel sexually."Gage had enslaved me, and by doing so he also freed me on some level."I didn't get much Ian in the first book, Ultimatum, but I got a better picture of Ian in Enslaved....and I fell for him.  I love Ian and how he deeply cares for Kayla, even after she threw him aside seven years prior.  Ian and Kayla were friends and lovers in college, until she found herself in a predicament with her now ex-husband, Rick.  This couple hadn't seen each other in seven years, until Ian came back into Kayla's life as a doctor at the hospital where Eve receives her care.  Both Kayla and Ian still have strong feelings for each other, but only Kayla knows that nothing can come of them, or she will pay the ultimate price.  When everything in Kayla's life is already spiraling out of control, and the stress is almost more than she can stand, Ian would be her go-to person....the one whose shoulder she can lean and cry on.  But that would be the cardinal sin against Gage, her master.  She isn't even allowed to talk to another man, much less seek emotional support from one.  Unfortunately, Ian doesn't give up that easily when Kayla tells him to stay away from her, and they both pay the price for his persistence.  That price is beyond cruel and both Kayla and Ian suffer severely.To say that I enjoyed Enslaved by Gemma James is an understatement.  No, I don't get my kicks from reading of cruel punishments to innocent and kind people, but I do love reading a well written book that captivates and keeps my attention and guides my emotions.  That is what Enslaved has done.  From shock to my own psychological fallacy to angst, this book has sucked me into its pages with vengeance.  I do recommend that Ultimatum and Enslaved be read in order, as they are meant to be.  This is a very fast read at only 19,000 words but has the feel of a full-blown novel from beginning to end, and there is a HUGE twist at the end!  I recommend this to the mentally strong who can handle a severely dark erotica read.  I may be going into therapy after reading this series, but you can bet I won't be going until after I read the next installment, Retribution. ;)  Kudos to Gemma James for taking me through the bowels of Hell with a well-written novella that has me anxiously waiting for more of Kayla's story.