The Golden Locket (Unbreakable #2) by Primula Bond-Interview, Review and Giveaway with the Author

The Golden Locket (Unbreakable #2) by Primula Bond-Interview, Review and Giveaway with the Author

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The Golden Locket
Unbreakable Trilogy #2
by Primula Bond
Release Date: December 19, 2013
Genre: erotica, romance, contemporary, adult, 18 +

The golden locket

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date December 19, 2013

Temptation would test them…

The second novel in the Unbreakable Trilogy, The Golden Locket follows Gustav and Serena to New York.

Ensconced in their Manhattan penthouse, all seems blissfully happy for Gustav and Serena. Still in the first flush of love, they have every satisfaction they could need.

But as they enjoy their New York pleasure ground, ghosts start to emerge from Gustav’s past, and when his damaged younger brother, Pierre, comes back into his life, he brings with him a dangerous threat…

With temptation waiting at every turn, can Gustav and Serena survive all the excitement that the Big Apple holds?

The sexy sequel to Primula Bond’s Sunday Times Top 20 bestseller, The Silver Chain. Perfect for fans of erotic romance.

REVIEW: THE GOLDEN LOCKET is the second instalment in Primula Bond’s contemporary, adult erotica series focusing on twenty year old photographer Serena Folkes and billionaire recluse Gustav Levi. If you have ever watched the Tom Cruise movie-Eyes Wide Shut-there is a similarity to much of the storyline premise.

Following shortly after the events of The Silver Chain where Gustav comes face to face with the brother he has not seen in five years, Gustav will embark on a soul searching and revealing promise to reunite with his brother Pierre. Pierre and Gustav’s adult history together is fraught with betrayal, lies, accusations and misunderstanding which is dramatically different from their early years. Gustav is still a dark and tortured soul whose love for his brother is tempered by a betrayal he considers unforgivable but a betrayal where he believes his brother was used as a pawn in a game of deceit and revenge.

The relationship between Gustav and Serena is sensual, daring, dark and passionate but Gustav’s past life in the BDSM scene threatens the building relationship when friends and acquaintances want more from Serena than either she or Gustav are willing to accept. Gustav pulls Serena into a lifestyle she knew nothing about and in return will discover that he is having a hard time accepting that Serena is a willing participant in a different game. As Serena’s career begins to flourish she is drawn into a web of seduction and danger with every job opportunity.

Pierre Levi is a man possessed. He wants what his brother has-success, wealth and love- and he will go about capturing it all even the woman who is not his to possess.

The storyline is darker and more sexually erotic than The Silver Chain. Primula draws the reader into a world of domination and submission; betrayal and trust; manipulation and degradation. Although all of the people are willing participants, there are varying degrees of acceptance and in this a line was crossed on a couple of occasions.

The erotic and sexual content is sensual between Serena and Gustav but becomes aggressive and demanding when other people become involved. Our couple are willing to experiment and consider all of the options but it was uncomfortable at times when our heroine Serena appeared to be pushed into situations where she had very little control or say. This was not the fault of her lover but of other people taking advantage of her naivety, youth and connections to Gustav and his dark and dangerous world.

Primula Bond has written a storyline about two tortured souls-brothers-who have fallen victim to the same woman time and time again. There is an odd pull between Gustav and Pierre as it involves said woman, but the pull towards Serena may be the only thing that saves both men in the end. Serena is the woman to pull Gustav back from the edge but Pierre is a man looking for someone to pull him back.

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley.

Reviewed by Sandy.

Interview

TRC: Hi Primula and welcome to The Reading Cafe. Congratulations on the upcoming release of The Golden Locket-the second instalment in your Unbreakable Trilogy.

We would like to start with some background information. Please tell us something about yourself?

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Primula-BondPrimula: If there is a specific image for how an erotic writer should be or look, I certainly don’t match it or indeed any kind of stereotype! From seeing me at the school gate you would assume I was a well educated, respectable mother of three with an admittedly racy sense of humour and an addiction to cooking programmes. You certainly wouldn’t suspect that I harbour secret cougar fantasies, require a brisk flogging before doing the weekly shop, or leave the other yummy mummies to return home and bury myself in the steamy world of erotic romance.

I was educated at a Catholic convent where I was head girl and sang soprano solo, and later studied English at Oxford. After graduating I broke away from my conventional life in London and took a job in Cairo teaching English to Egyptian children, which turned out to be two years which would change my life. Not only was I a tall red-headed single English girl living and working in a Muslim country, but I learned some Arabic, travelled all over the country and saw all the amazing tombs and temples, and also met an English guy who became the father of my eldest son.

I was then a single mother for several years, working in various legal offices and writing the occasional freelance features article on single parenthood and other aspects of my own life before meeting my husband and having two more children. I now work part time for criminal defence lawyers, take in foreign students, do portrait photography, and when I’m not writing erotica I still write freelance articles on various aspects of my life and experiences as well as (so far unpublished) short stories and novels under my own name – all of which contain some element of the adventures I’ve had in my own life.

TRC: Your storylines are all erotic and sexual in nature. What was the precipitating factor or ‘light bulb’ moment behind your decision to write erotica literature?

Primula: I’ve been writing stories since I was about eight years old, won poetry competitions as a school girl, and as I say wrote freelance features about various topics such as being a single mother and later an ‘older’ mother. About 23 years ago, when I was still a single mother with long lonely evenings to fill, I started sending various works to editors before giving in to my romantic streak and sending three chapters off to Mills and Boon. They rejected the submission but unlike many pro forma rejection letters they took the trouble helpfully to explain why: my sex scenes were too explicit. On that note I furiously decided, after licking my wounds, to turn that ability to my advantage, and in the space of a very heated lunch hour I bashed out a short story about a man in a cage delivered as a birthday present to a frustrated spinster, sent it to For Women magazine, and they accepted it, published it, and paid me £150 for it!

TRC: What difficulties have you encountered getting your books published?

Primula: My ‘literary’ or mainstream works, especially the short stories which I love writing under my own name, have so far not been published (except by myself, on Amazon) but since that first erotic short story I have had little problem in getting erotica published. When I started there was For Women and Forum magazines, as well as Black Lace and Accent Press, all of whom regularly took my work.

The golden locketTRC: THE GOLDEN LOCKET is the second instalment in your Unbreakable Trilogy. Would you please tell us something about the premise?

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Primula: Serena Folkes is a beautiful auburn haired girl a little like I was at that age – but with knobs on. Or, as I choose to put it like the Berocca adverts, me, but on a really good day. Unlike me, though, she’s had an unpleasant, upbringing with adoptive parents, and she is also not your archetypal innocent virgin, having had one quite rough teenage boyfriend, but she has come through her childhood with a fiery urge to love and be loved. She also has a ferocious artistic talent, and when she and Gustav, who is several years older and after an abusive marriage very wary of any kind of intimacy, collide in London on Halloween night they turn out to be twin souls.

On the surface it looks as if he is her guide and mentor, as well as financial patron, but she is soon teaching him lessons about life, too, and the physical attraction is what breaks through the ice in the end. I have used their situation to indulge my love of photography and travel as they move through their story.

The Golden Locket picks up when they have arrived in New York to live together and pursue their individual careers and business interests, but they have to deal with the unexpected reappearance of Gustav’s long-lost brother Pierre, who ran off five years ago with Gustav’s ex-wife. He is as troubling and charismatic as Gustav, and his connection with Margot, the ex-wife, threatens the Gustav and Serena. But Gustav will do everything to repair his relationship with his brother.

TRC: Have you considered writing a spin-off series featuring Gustav’s brother and the time period after their tumultuous divide?

Primula: It’s a great idea, but much of that estranged time period will become clear in The Golden Locket when we get to know more about Pierre and just how troublesome he is, and when he tells both Gustav and Serena some of what went on not only when he and Gustav were kids but during the five years that he left with Margot and was estranged from Pierre.

I do have another burning idea, though, for a spin-off novel which would be like a prequel, involving Serena’s biological parents, their forbidden love affair, and how they came to abandon her as a newborn baby.

TRC: If you could virtually cast the characters in the UNBREAKABLE TRILOGY, which actors or models would you use for the major characters within the series?

Primula: I have had great fun googling actors who fit the bill. My instinct if a film were made would be to swerve the Hollywood hype, be groundbreaking and original, and go for gorgeous unknowns. But to give an idea, I’ve always had Olivier Martinez, the French actor, in my mind for Gustav, Josh Holloway from ‘Lost’, or Dominic Zamprogna (from ‘General Hospital’). They must have silky dark hair, haunted, Slavic cheek bones, black eyes, and the constant hint of unshavenness. Amanda Seyfried would make a great a red-haired Serena. Pierre would have to be a thicker set, younger version of Gustav, the Puerto Recan actor Sharlim Ortiz perhaps if he put on a little muscle. Polly could be the Swedish actress MyAnna Burring who was in ‘Twilight’ and also ‘Downton Abbey’. Salma Hayek, Diane Lane, Rachel Weicz or Demi Moore could be Margot, the evil but charismatic ex-wife. Tilda Swinton could be Crystal, the enigmatic housekeeper, but she might steal the show!

TRC: Amazing images for sure!!

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Primula: I always have a vague story line in mind, but I have to start with clearly delineated, three dimensional characters and they really do direct the action, like a play where the actors do their own ‘improv’. What is particularly interesting and/or distracting is when secondary characters become far more interesting than they are supposed to be. This can even happen in a short story. One of the aspects of conventional romantic fiction that puts me off now is that secondary characters are discouraged other than as ciphers or confidantes, whereas in my trilogy they help to drive the action and motivation of the main characters – and nearly destroy them!

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Book #1 THE SILVER CHAIN is available for $1.99 or less from most e-retailers

TRC: Are you a plotter or a pantster?

Primula: I read a blog recently which said you could steer a middle ground and call yourself a ‘planster’. So that’s what I am, but mostly I’m a pantster. It’s a bit different when you’re at the stage I’m currently at, which is nearly finishing book 3 of a trilogy. But even if I was starting an entirely new novel or series, for my own peace of mind (and to have something to show my editor!) I would still like to have a fairly sturdy outline of the plot and action, and even break it down into chapters, because once I’ve done that I can work out how to make each chapter build to the next, and lead logically and believably to the climax. It also helps visually to see on the screen how I am likely to end each chapter at its own suitably dramatic moment.

I find it very comforting before starting a novel to see that outline in front of me (and some people lay it out all over the floor on sheets of paper so they can physically touch it and re-arrange it – which must be plotting rather than pantsing), and it even helps me plan how long each chapter will take to write, and how to approach the finale – a little like a flight plan, right down to the landing. Although, unlike a flight plan, I can deviate from the original idea if I choose. Which now I’m analysing myself and my writing habits, happens pretty rarely these days, and mostly only if my editor suggests it!

I’m sounding more and more like a plotter, aren’t I, even though I thought I was more of a pantser. So I must be a planster. My outlines are usually only a page or so. I don’t plan dialogue or scenes in much detail until I get down to writing, but then the ideas fly in from all directions, especially when I’m away from my laptop in the bath or in the car or at the stove, and then I have to write them on envelopes or the back of my hand. They might be a comment someone will make in a few chapters’ time, or how to round off a current conversation, or a description, or an explanation, to clear up what I’ve already written.

Sorry, I haven’t really answered that question, have I? Hell – I’m both! I’m a Gemini. Capable of being two things at the same time..

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writers fail in this endeavor?

Primula: This goes back to creating unique, rounded characters from the off, believing in them, making them three dimensional, inhabiting them and their head space without being brazenly autobiographical or self-absorbed, and then making the reader see the world through their eyes, even if that world is extraordinary, tragic or surreal. The greatest skill for example is to write through a child’s eyes without being twee or mawkish and the best example I have ever read of this is ‘Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close’ by Jonathan Safran Foer (incidentally, the film no way conveyed this same truthfulness). A book which also has the dubious accolade of making me cry at the end.

So this viewpoint may only be through one character’s viewpoint, but this mustn’t be claustrophobic and the actions and reactions of the other characters around him, her or them must be lively and real. Even if the main character is ‘unreliable’ ie unhinged, or evil (a murder, for example). To help me achieve this, and to try to avoid telling not showing, I envisage my novels very much as plays or films, so I can see the action in front of me and hear the dialogue at it might be on a television or a film. So much so that I am thinking of doing a course in screen writing which would hone the idea of dialogue with minimal stage direction.

A writer has failed in this mostly if they have fallen back on telling not showing, and also if they have made a character unsympathetic or uninteresting. A character can be horrible, evil, nasty (see murderers, above) but they must still draw the reader along with them. But they have to have three dimensions, a fascinating back story, and some kind of logic, albeit flawed, in the way they move through this slice of their life.

TRC: How do you keep the plot unpredictable without sacrificing content and believability?

Primula: Content and believability are maintained by setting up character and situation skilfully enough that whatever happens makes sense, no matter how, as I’ve mentioned previously, odd or eccentric, dangerous or worrying that situation turns out to be. I think tension can be held nice and taut by having passages of apparent calm and sensuality which move the story along, but all the while the reader knows, because the skilled writer has set the characters up to be troubled or deceitful, or the external elements such as the weather is bad, or there is a financial or physical threat looming, that this calm won’t last and we are being dragged inexorably along the plateau towards the next mountain top/climax, or the next valley/disaster.

These moments are then shaken up not necessarily with a car accident, say, or a murder (although of course you’re allowed some real, bloody drama if the story merits it), but a more realistic short, sharp shock will do just as well: the phone call or the text, the unexpected visitor, the accidental pregnancy, the dreaded diagnosis, a missed train or a dropped priceless artefact – something that pinches or cracks the fabric of the characters’ lives and shakes the kaleidoscope. Because that’s what happens in real life – certainly all of the above have happened in mine!!

TRC: How do you handle the pressures and anxiety of deadlines?

Primula: With difficulty. At first I resent them and fight against them and find any excuse to get on a train to London or clean out my jam jar cupboard or try out the new coffe shop in town or watch daytime TV, but after allowing myself to do this for a day or so I force myself to at least sit down and write the outline as I’ve described already. That might be all I do in the first day. Then I’ll make notes on a calender to work out how many days or weeks I will allow to write each chapter – allowing a week or two for redrafting. And then on the third day I make myself write at least the first paragraph, so that I’ve got something to work on when I start in earnest.

TRC: What do you believe is the biggest misconception about you?

Primula: Personally? That I’m aloof, when really I’m quite shy, but once I make a good friend I’m chatty, love intimacy, and think I’m a good, humourous, supportive friend. That I’m calm and sorted, when really I’m like the swan, gliding serenely on the surface but paddling frantically beneath. And that I’ve had an easy life, when actually I’ve had some knocks (which makes me a better writer as well as friend, hopefully) eg when I was an apparently successful Oxford student secretly wrestling with depression, or during the tough years as a single mother, or losing the love of my life (luckily to find him again). But I have to say that one of the few advantages of getting older is that the calmness you see on the surface is, actually, more the reality, and you can wear, and admit to, those battle scars with pride.

And as a writer, the misconception might be that I’m writing ‘formula’ erotica with little sensitivity or intellect, when in fact the romantic erotica I write is very intense and lyrical, and I am determined that the Unbreakable Trilogy will be forged in my own style, with my own voice.

TRC: Writers Block is a very real phenomenon for many authors. How do you handle the stress and anxiety of Writers Block?

Primula: As I’ve said above, dealing with the stress of deadlines is all about discipline and organisation. You must have some kind of outline, no matter how shadowy, before you can start writing. Writers Block can be a killer, though, because if you can’t get that first line out, it can be like a physical pain as well as a personal sense of frustration and failure and no-one in your poor, long-suffering family (if they are not themselves writers) will understand. Hell, it’s just a story, for goodness sake! Not a speech for the Prime Minister! But to you it’s a challenge that you’re unable to face.

So my advice is don’t get stale and just sit staring at the blank screen. Instead, get up, go for a walk, bake a cake, stare out of the window, have a glass or two of wine, but know that you must, eventually, return to that wretched page or screen. I do have my own particular corner of the house to write in now, but more often than not the first, glorious line (even if I change it later, at least the ice has been broken) comes to me in the bath/in the car/at the stove…

TRC: Many authors bounce ideas with family, friends and fellow authors. With whom do you bounce ideas?

Primula: Very occasionally with my husband, and recently with other writers at the workshops and festivals I have attended. But mostly I keep ideas to myself and let them grow inside me. Even though I know discussing the process out loud might make sense of a plot or character, or help shape it, I am very protective of my work and am happier discussing it with my editors, which I did for the first time this year, going all the way to their office in London and talking about nothing but The Golden Locket for four hours with people who knew as much if not more about it than I did – and although they wanted me to make some pretty scary changes, being treated like a professional was BLISS.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Primula: I am nearing the end of Book 3 of the Unbreakable Trilogy. I deliberately left the whole summer before starting this so I could get The Golden Locket edited and out of the way, and coming back to Gustav and Serena has been fun, but really sticky going at times. There are some tricky loose ends to tie up but I am loving weaving more challenges into Serena and Gustav’s relationship, as well as showing how far they have come in this trilogy and how strong and tender they are when they are together – and how it is meant to be forever.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Primula: Only the fact that it surprises some people to learn that I nearly quit the erotica world 18 months ago because the magazines and imprints seemed to be folding up, and the money we were earning per story barely made it worth the time writing. I got halfway through my ‘literary’ novel when my editor at Avon Books asked me, in the wake of the 50 Shades phenomenon, to write an erotic romance for Harper Collins. And how could I refuse?

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food
Coronation chicken or well done cheeseburger with loads of mayo on the side.

Favorite Dessert
Lemon posset or cheesecake.

Favorite TV Show
Homeland.

Dark or Milk Chocolate
Dark.

Pet Peeve
Bad grammar and incorrect use of apostrophes.

Secret Celebrity Crush
Kelly Brook.

TRC: Thank you Primula for taking the time to answer our questions. WE wish you all the best.

giveaway

Primula and HarperCollinsUK is offering an ecopy of THE GOLDEN LOCKET to three (3) lucky winners at The Reading Cafe.

1. If you have not registered with The Reading Cafe, please register using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of our social log-ins.

2. If you are using a social log-in, please post your email with your comment.

3. For extra entries {LIKE} us on Facebook and Twitter then come back and tell us.

4. Giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY

5. Giveaway runs from November 27 to November 30, 2013

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The Training (The Submissive #3) by Tara Sue Me- Review, Guest Post and Giveaway

THE TRAINING (The Submissive Trilogy #3) by Tara Sue Me-Review, Guest post and Giveaway

The Training Banner

The Training
The Submissive Trilogy #3
by Tara Sue Me
Release Date: October 1, 2013
Genre: Erotic, Adult, Romance
The Training

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Review

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 1, 2013

It started with a hidden desire.

Millionaire CEO Nathaniel West has always played by his own strict set of rules, ones he expects everyone to follow—especially the women he’s dominated in his bedroom. But his newest lover is breaking down all his boundaries and rewriting his rule book.

Abby King never imagined that she would capture the heart of Nathaniel West, one of New York City’s most eligible bachelors—and its most desirable dominant. What began as a weekend arrangement of pleasure has become a passionate romance with a man who knows every inch of her body and her soul – yet remains an enigmatic lover. Though he is tender and caring, his painful past remains a wall between them.

Abby knows the only way to truly earn his trust is to submit to him fully and let go of all of her lingering inhibitions. Because to lead Nathaniel on a path to greater intimacy, she must first let him deeper into her world than anyone has ever gone before…

•••••••••••••••••••••••••

REVIEW: THE TRAINING is the third and final installment in Tara Sue Me’s The Submissive Trilogy. Originally written as a work of fan fiction based on the Twilight series, there are definite and parallel similarities to FSOG and many similar series of the same genre.

The Training is as the title implies. The storyline focuses on the training of Abby King to be Nathaniel West’s submissive but it is also the training of a man to become a lover and protector. Throughout the series the building relationship between Abby and Nathaniel has gone from Dom and sub to friends and lovers, but it is the lovers aspect that has thrown Nathaniel’s life into turmoil. His relationship with all of his former subs has always been about business and sex but somewhere along the way, Nathaniel lost his heart to Abby King and he was looking forward to a HEA and a forever.

The sexuality aspect of the storyline followed two distinctly different paths. One ventured into a sensual yet erotic fairy tale of a building love between two people destined to become a couple; the other focused on a definitive Dom/sub relationship where at times the dominant in Nathaniel West was in opposition to the man with whom Abby had fallen in love. And herein lies the issue-where does a Dom/sub relationship end and a friends to lover relationship begin?

If you are a fan of FSOG, there is no denying the similarities but The Training is a more explicit storyline with a BDSM backdrop. Where FSOG skimmed the lifestyle, The Submissive Trilogy and The Training brings the reader into the underground world of a Dom/sub lifestyle.

The writing style, once again, is simple. Some readers may question the heroine’s (Abby King) decision to become a sub especially when she readily accepts everything that is requested and demanded (with no prior training, experience or desire). The storyline does not cross into hardcore BDSM (unless nipple clamps and suspension ropes are not your thing) but saying that, each reader will take away a different aspect to the storyline premise and the lifestyle of which is represents.

And as I have said in a prior review for FSOG, who are we to judge a lifestyle that is different from our own. This is after all a story of fiction that will make you think about what actually goes on behind the scenes of some of the most rich and powerful people in the world

Reading Order and links to our reviews
1. The Submissive
2. The Dominant
3. The Training

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley.

Reviewed by Sandy

Guest Post

The Things No One Tells You

American Author Tara Sue Me There’s a strange mixture of things involved in being an author. Many of these I gave no thought to when I started writing. I think when a lot of people imagine the day of an author, they think of someone sitting by himself or herself for hours at a time with a notebook and pen or a laptop. I won’t say those times don’t exist, I’ll just say it’s not the usual.

I’m an introvert by nature and I could spend hours in a room, by myself, working on a manuscript or plotting my next novel. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying I don’t like people, it’s just that I’m perfectly content spending the day with my characters. I do wonder what it’s like for the extroverted author, is it hard for them to spend time alone, writing?

But writing is just one part of the picture. These days with social media being what it is, most authors have various online hangouts. I have both a Facebook and Twitter I’m active on (well, I’m a lot more active on Twitter than I am Facebook). I enjoy Twitter. I’ve heard it described as a never-ending cocktail party you can jump in and out of. With Twitter you can connect with and have instant conversations with people. Facebook, for me, feels different. I always feel as if I’m posting, “LET’S TALK ABOUT ME!” when I write something.

There’s a balance you have to find in what you share online. My husband is in law enforcement, so we’re a bit on the conservative side. I only call my children Oldest and Youngest, and even my dogs have aliases (no, their names really aren’t Fifi and Pierre). But at the same time you want to share part of your life with your followers.

One of my most favorite things to do as an author is meet my readers. I may be a bit (okay, a lot) on the quiet side, but I can go on and on and on about my books. Seriously, just ask my husband. In fact, I like to talk all things books, be that reading or writing.

Recently, Oldest’s teacher asked me to talk to his class about being an author. I won’t lie, I was worried. Not because I was afraid they’d throw things or fall asleep, but because I didn’t want them to pick on Oldest for his mom being a dork. I’m happy to say the talk went well and I don’t think I came across too dorkish. Again, it’s just another aspect of being an author you don’t think about.

All things considered, though, I love what I do and I wouldn’t change a thing.

Tara Sue Me

FOLLOW:  Website / Facebook / Twitter

 

Giveaway

 

Penguin Publishing is offering a paper copy of either THE SUBMISSIVE (book 1) or THE DOMINANT (book 2) to one lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe

The Submissive Trilogy

1. Please register using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of the social log-ins.

2. If you are using a social log-in, please post your email address with your comment.

3. Please comment telling us which book you would like to win: The Submissive OR The Dominant.

4. The giveaway is open to USA only.

5. The giveaway runs from October 15 to October 18, 2013

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The Dominant (The Submissive #2) by Tara Sue Me-a review

THE DOMINANT (The Submissive #2) by Tara Sue Me-a review

The Dominant

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 6 2013

Order Links: Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk/ Barnes and Noble / KOBO / The Book Depository

Nathaniel West doesn’t lose control.

As the playboy CEO of West Industries, he governs the boardroom during the day; as a strict dominant with exacting rules, he commands the bedroom at night. He never takes on inexperienced submissives, but when Abigail King’s application comes across his desk, he breaks his own restrictions and decides to test her limits.

Abby’s combination of innocence and willingness is intoxicating, and Nathaniel is soon determined to collar her as his own. As long as she follows his orders and surrenders herself fully to him, no one will get hurt.

But when Nathaniel begins falling for Abby on a deeper level, he realizes that the trust must go both ways—and he has secrets which could bring the foundations of their entire relationship crashing down…

•••••••••••••••

REVIEW: THE DOMINANT is the second novel in Tara Sue Me’s The Submissive series focusing on Dom Nathaniel West and his sub Abby King. Originally written as fan-fiction based on FSOG and Twilight, The Submissive series has been released as a trilogy with the final installment in October 2013.

First, I must point out that THE DOMINANT is written in Nathaniel’s POV and it is the flip side/parallel to The Submissive. Where we were privy to Abby’s emotions and thoughts in The Submissive, The Dominant reveals Nathaniel’s inner most turmoil as he endeavors to keep his distance from the woman he has watched from afar. The Dominant storyline runs concurrent to The Submissive and tells the story from Nathaniel’s POV. The switch in perspectives is nothing new especially for fans of Twilight and FSOG. At the end of FSOG, E.L James offered up Chapter 1 from Christian’s POV and Stephenie Meyer attempted to write the Twilight saga from Edward’s POV with Midnight Sun.

The Dominant was interesting from the perspective that the cold façade of Nathaniel West hides the depth of his true feelings for Abby King. The background of the premise reveals that Nathaniel has known of Abby since their days in university. Abby had never previously met Nathaniel but his desire to possess and love Abigail King has long been at the forefront of his needs and wants. And the day she walks into his office, applying for the position of his submissive, Nathaniel embarks on a self-debasing internal argument. Disgusted by his own need to dominate, Nathaniel hopes to keep Abby at a distance when in reality he wants nothing more than to be loved and to love.

Once again, The Dominant is nothing new in the BDSM genre based on the fan-fic writings from the followers of the Twilight saga. If you have read the FSOG trilogy you will recognize the characterizations and storyline premises throughout The Submissive/The Dominant. In fact, there is virtually a character to character identical match between the different series especially to FSOG. The writing is simple; there is no philosophical conundrum or epic mystery to solve. The storyline focuses on a man whose need to dominate rules his personal and private life, and when he finds the one woman who offers herself up for be at his beck and call, he will find that she is the one who will finally break the ice around a heart that has been frozen for a very long time. Familiar story, familiar scenario, recognizable characters but a different perspective on the inner turmoil and emotions that befall a man who deems himself unworthy of love and commitment

Reading Order
1. The Submissive
2. The Dominant
3. The Training

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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Ningaloo Nights by Tracy Cooper-Posey – a Review

Ningaloo Nights by Tracy Cooper-Posey – a Review

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Links to order Ningaloo Nights: AmazonKobo

DESCRIPTION:
New York cop Sherry Abandonato cashes in her savings and dashes to Ningaloo in remote northwest Western Australia to find her sister who disappeared ten days ago. The only one with the skill to guide her to Derremawan is Mason Hayward, once an official guide with a reputation for getting people out of trouble, but now the town’s bad man.

In a searing afternoon of unexpected passion, Mason strikes a bargain. He’ll get her to Derremawan, if she agrees to go there with him unconditionally, on his terms and his conditions.

Sherry is astonished to find herself agreeing to the insane bargain, and worse, responding positively to the idea of three days of Mason Hayward dictating terms out under the Australian sun.

 

REVIEW:

3.5 out for 5 for this reader folks!

Ningaloo Nights by Tracy Cooper-Posey is a short erotic, with BDSM elements story set in Australians outback where the heat comes from more than just the scorching sun.  

Sherry Abandonato is a New York cop that decides to fly to Australia after her sister goes missing.  After speaking with the locals she decides to seek out a tour guide (who just so happens to have a no nonsense mentality and the sex appeal to go with it .. WINK) to take her into the dangerous countryside to try and figure out what happened to her sister.

Mason Hayward is somewhat taken back with Sherry.  She exibits the tough New York cop mentality (and the potty mouth to match ..lol), but he sees something vunerable and “shielded” within her.  He is set to break down those walls when he accepts this job.

Within minutes of meeting these two are engaging in the hot and somewhat heavy.  From there an unspoken “this is going to happen” is understood between them and off they set on their trip.

We encounter some pretty heated sexy scenes along the way with Mason most certainly being the dominant trying to entice Sherry into trusting enough to submit.  Also, they come to know each other on a emotional level and discover they both harbor some serious heartache from their pasts.

Okay so that is the gest of the story.  Honestly for a less than 100 page story, this was hot and I was entertained.  My only true “beef” with it was that everything came on so quick so it felt a little unbelievable at times.  I think perhaps with a few more pages, we may have been able to enjoy a little bit more anticipation and seen them develop as a couple

Overall, a great quick read that I gobbled in one sitting.  If you like the smutty, especially the smutty in the sun … grab an iced tea and settle in!  LOL

HAPPY READING!

Reviewed by Rachel

Copy provided by Author

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The Submissive (The Submissive #1) by Tara Sue Me-a review

THE SUBMISSIVE (Submissive #1) by Tara Sue Me-a review

The Submissive

LINKS TO ORDER: Amazon/ KOBO / Barnes and Noble / The Book Depository

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release November 2012

One word and she’ll never see him again.

The city of New York knows Nathaniel West as CEO of a powerful corporation, but Abby knows he’s more. Nathaniel lives by a set of exacting rules. From the boardroom to his bedroom, he must be obeyed—and any woman wanting to be part of his life must submit to his will. When Abby finally meets Nathaniel and agrees to wear his collar, she has everything she’s ever wanted—or so she thinks.

Nathaniel drives her to new heights of pleasure and introduces her to a glamorous world of power and privilege she knows only through the social pages. Heeding Nathaniel’s commands is never hard—but before long Abby wants more. Her master’s rules don’t allow for negotiation—but the heart never plays by the rules and love is the most extreme fantasy of all

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REVIEW: The Submissive is the first instalment in Tara Sue Me’s (not her real name) series originally written as a piece of fan-fiction based on the Twilight series and first published (2009) online at fanfiction.net. It is very hard to be objective with the knowledge that nothing about this particular story is original or fresh considering the glut of similar series on the market.

The Submissive follows the same general outline of several of the other number one selling erotic BDSM trilogies currently on our book shelves and, the comparisons and similarities have never been denied.

The heroine, Abigail King knows who and what Nathaniel West wants-he wants a submissive and Abigail sets her sights on claiming that position. Our hero Nathaniel believes himself to be a cold and heartless man and sets out to prove that no woman will ever win his heart but Nathaniel will be the first to admit that falling in love was never in the contract.

The Submissive is a quick read that is so similar to Fifty Shades of Grey that I read the storyline anticipating and successfully guessing the direction on virtually every page. The major difference is that Abigail goes in search of a Dom/sub relationship and knows exactly what she is getting into-exactly like Bella knowing and wanting her sparkly vampire. And the BDSM content is a little more aggressive and descriptive. I will admit that I was not a fan of the safe word – turpentine. I know, I know and there was no explanation as to why turpentine was Nathaniel’s choice.

There is little in the way of character development especially of a descriptive nature-in fact there is no physical description of the heroine that I can recall. The secondary characters are mirror images of their counterparts in FSOG and the Twilight series. There is no surprise and no secret revelation-the story is what it is –a piece of fan fiction that is perfect for a lazy afternoon when you have an hour or so to spare to indulge in a sexual fantasy of your own. I am waiting to see where the storyline takes me next.

The Submissive, for all its’ similarities to many of the other series, is an interesting storyline. Tara Sue Me puts her own spin on the BDSM genre so that in its’ own way, The Submissive is a colorful read that will catch your attention and leave you wanting more.

There are two more storylines to follow:
The Dominant-August 2013
The Training-October 2013

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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THE DIARY OF A SUBMISSIVE by Sophie Morgan-a review

THE DIARY OF A SUBMISSIVE by Sophie Morgan-a review

The Diary of a Submissive: A Modern True Tale of Sexual Awakening (Release date September 4, 2012)

NOTE:  Storyline content contains explicit BDSM and sexual content. Mature readers only.

Blurb from the back cover:

In Diary of a Submissive, Sophie Morgan candidly explains what exactly an independent, 21st century woman gets out of relinquishing her power and personal freedom in a submissive relationship with a dominant man for their mutual sexual pleasure.

In the wake of Fifty Shades of Grey, here is a memoir that offers the real story of what is means to be a submissive and follows Sophie’s story as she progresses from her early erotic experiences through to experimenting with her newfound awakened sexuality. From the endorphin rush of her first spanking right through to being collared, she explains in frank and explicit fashion her sexual explorations. But it isn’t until she meets James, a real life ‘Christian Grey,’ that her boundaries and sexual fetishism are really pushed. As her relationship with James travels into darker and darker places, the question becomes: Where will it end? Can Sophie reconcile her sexuality with the rest of her life, and is it possible for the perfect man to be perfectly cruel?

Daring, controversial, and sensual, Diary of a Submissive is filled with a captivating warmth and astounding honesty such that no one— man or woman—will be able to put Sophie’s story down.

(Review)

Sophie Morgan begins her story telling about her normal childhood in a working class family. There was no corporeal punishment in her home for her or her sister. No kind of abuse whatsoever. However, while watching the movie Robin Hood when she was a child of about 13 or 14, Sophie was drawn to Maid Marian’s character, and not in the way one would normally think. She was taken with the scenes where Maid Marian was captured by the Sheriff of Nottingham and held in a dungeon, tied or in chains. To quote Sophie, “that struck a chord with me, made my heart race”. The story moves forward with her going to university and having her first experience in submission, which involves her first spanking. And she likes it.

Once she graduates, she gets her first job in journalism in a town several hours from home and meets the man, Thomas, who will be her first true dom. As their relationship progresses, Sophie sorts through her feelings, which at several points, are confusing to her and to me as a reader. She finally reconciles that she is a submissive in every sense of the word when it comes to her sexuality. After three years at a job that she sees no future in, she accepts a job that is closer to home. Even though she and Thomas remain friends, they end their D/s relationship.

Sophie eventually meets James, and it doesn’t take either of them long to figure out that each is into the D/s lifestyle. As their relationship progresses, she finds herself falling in love with him. She truly wants to find someone to settle down with and have a family without giving up the D/s lifestyle, and he seems to be the one. He pushes her boundaries like no one else ever has.

This book is touted as being a cross between Bridget Jones’ Diary and 50 Shades of Grey. Both of those were love stories. I didn’t read this story that way. This is not a romance. This is a first person account of someone discovering her sexual boundaries, boundaries that, in my opinion, are very blurred. A lot of the Dom/sub story crosses the hard-line into true savagery. The humiliation and true, hard-core pain that she endures is overwhelming. It was obviously her choice to endure all of these things as she NEVER uses her safe word. Not in any relationship she was in. Her need to be truly submissive in every way astounded me. To say this book is not for everyone is an understatement. If anyone who reads this has been in an abusive relationship or had traumatic sexual experiences, this is DEFINITELY not for them. Is this a book I would have read if I hadn’t been asked to review it? No. Even though I truly do not understand the lifestyle, and find a lot of this story abusive, I have to hand it to Sophie for laying herself bare (no pun intended) for all to read. I truly hope that writing this story was a cathartic experience for her.

Copy supplied by publisher.

Reviewed by Vickie M.

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