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bitchie's review
3.0
This book just reinforces that this is not the type of story for me. It was well written, and I enjoyed the characters, but the whole submission thing- not my thing. I don't mind stories with rough sex, toys, spanking, etc, it's the on your knees, yes Sir, eyes down, showing off your boy thing that I don't care for.
This book follows a killer, taking out people in the BDSM scene, and it opens up a whole new world to Gavin, a married cop who's deeply in the closet. The beginning was slow going for me, I didn't really get interested until. So, it took me a while. And then once the training started, the story lost me again, and I found myself skimming.
As far as the case itself, I think Gavin was an absolute, total moron. All the evidence pointing one way, even his partner warned him, and he still not only
So I'm giving this book three stars. The writing was mostly good, but parts of it just weren't my thing, Gavin was an idiot, and a detective just shouldn't be that stupid and blind.
This book follows a killer, taking out people in the BDSM scene, and it opens up a whole new world to Gavin, a married cop who's deeply in the closet. The beginning was slow going for me, I didn't really get interested until
Spoiler
Gavin left his wife, after catching her fucking his partner.As far as the case itself, I think Gavin was an absolute, total moron. All the evidence pointing one way, even his partner warned him, and he still not only
Spoiler
agreed to meet with the guy with Ben to discuss buying "toys", but they actually left their drinks unattended with the guy, knowing that every victim was drugged!So I'm giving this book three stars. The writing was mostly good, but parts of it just weren't my thing, Gavin was an idiot, and a detective just shouldn't be that stupid and blind.
stephen_speck13's review
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
sabrina7's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
this book was very well written so reading about the murder scenes was devastating. i feel like the bdsm lifestyle was also very respectfully portrayed and described. my only problem with this book was how obvious it was that damon was the murderer. it was pretty frustrating too when myah was begging gavin to be careful and not interact with lane. gavin’s refusal to do this felt pretty bull-headed and stubborn which didn’t feel like an accurate depiction of his character. overall a cool book and i woke be super interested to read myah’s story :)
emmalthompson85's review
3.0
Power exchange is a m/m romance with a crime plot. The protagonist finds himself falling into the BDSM lifestyle when guy is murdered with his own BDSM equipment.
I liked the characters and the dynamic between the MC and his love interest. I liked how they managed to make submission something seperate from his core personality. Like, he could be submissive but still defend himself. Still have a tough job that he was good at etc. The sex scenes were pretty good.
I had a few issues with grammar etc. I felt the book needed another good edit. I also had plot issues in that by a few chapters from the end it was glaringly obvious who committed the murder and it made the MC look like an idiot when he ignored that evidence because he wanted the sex. There was some clunky dialogue too. None of these, other than maybe the killer being telegraphed too early, are real deal breakers but they are elements.
I also had a few issues with how consent was used. I love BDSM stories but I love consent. While this story was better than a lot I've read, there were still a few issues. There's a time when a dom refuses to tell a sub what he's going to do before they've fully negotiated limits so I'm not sure how that can be informed consent. There's a scene where a sub is uncertain and the dom pushes them to do the thing right away. There's a scene where a sub wants to safeword but knows his dom will be upset with him if he does so doesn't which is what I found really disturbing as that is NOT healthy behaviour for any relationship and a dom/sub relaitonship more than any other has to be built on trust and a willingness to respect yours and others limits.
These were all minor incidents and didn't cause lasting distress for any of the participants but I am hyper-critical of these things in BDSM novels so, there you go.
I liked the characters and the dynamic between the MC and his love interest. I liked how they managed to make submission something seperate from his core personality. Like, he could be submissive but still defend himself. Still have a tough job that he was good at etc. The sex scenes were pretty good.
I had a few issues with grammar etc. I felt the book needed another good edit. I also had plot issues in that by a few chapters from the end it was glaringly obvious who committed the murder and it made the MC look like an idiot when he ignored that evidence because he wanted the sex. There was some clunky dialogue too. None of these, other than maybe the killer being telegraphed too early, are real deal breakers but they are elements.
I also had a few issues with how consent was used. I love BDSM stories but I love consent. While this story was better than a lot I've read, there were still a few issues. There's a time when a dom refuses to tell a sub what he's going to do before they've fully negotiated limits so I'm not sure how that can be informed consent. There's a scene where a sub is uncertain and the dom pushes them to do the thing right away. There's a scene where a sub wants to safeword but knows his dom will be upset with him if he does so doesn't which is what I found really disturbing as that is NOT healthy behaviour for any relationship and a dom/sub relaitonship more than any other has to be built on trust and a willingness to respect yours and others limits.
These were all minor incidents and didn't cause lasting distress for any of the participants but I am hyper-critical of these things in BDSM novels so, there you go.
meatloafqueen's review
3.0
Like many other reviewers have said, the killer was painfully obvious. It was hard to read Gavin being so oblivious to all the neon signs saying IT'S THEM! IT'S THEM! Pretty shabby detective work
The relationship stuff moved too fast for my taste. The ex just totally disappeared and Gavin was with Ben right away. Gavin's new exploration of his sexuality also happened really quickly.. he blew the closet door off its hinges
There was some "telling not showing". The epilogue had me feeling like "this is a whole ass story that should be told in the next book" but overall I liked the story & the characters and I'll continue with the series
The relationship stuff moved too fast for my taste. The ex just totally disappeared and Gavin was with Ben right away. Gavin's new exploration of his sexuality also happened really quickly.. he blew the closet door off its hinges
There was some "telling not showing". The epilogue had me feeling like "this is a whole ass story that should be told in the next book" but overall I liked the story & the characters and I'll continue with the series
teresab78's review
5.0
4.5 Stars - Wow! I loved the psychology of the dom/sub relationship described. I liked that Gavin and Ben were on equal footing pretty much everywhere - similar builds, both with careers, both with unmet needs. Their personalities truly dictated their role in the relationship, not their social standing or physical stature. I agree with the majority of reviewers that said the police work was shoddy. It had to be that way to get the ending the author wanted, but it felt like a bad movie where you are yelling "don't go in the basement idiot!". I also would have liked to see more of them after the big event rather than having it glossed over in the epilogue. Myah was great, as was Cole and the rest of Gavin's family.
liza5326's review
5.0
I finally got around to reading Power Exchange and I am so glad I did. I wasn't sure I was going to be into it because BDSM isn't really my thing, but I was hooked from page 1. Gavin and Ben are amazing characters and I loved everything about them. Gavin was so real. He may have gotten into the scene quickly, but he didn't lose who he was and become the doormat some authors portray new subs as. I also loved the epilogue and how true to life that was. I can't wait to read Safeword to see how their relationship continues to recover.
jamiesbookaddiction's review
4.0
I actually enjoyed this one for the most part. I really enjoyed Gavin and Ben's story.
Gavin went through some personal stuff early on that pulls at your heartstrings. You could tell he has an attraction to Ben right away. Ben is a therapist that is brought in because of his specialty in the BDSM community to help consult. These two really are perfect for each other.
What I didn't enjoy so much was the case aspect. Gavin really isn't a very smart detective. He's probably one of the worst I've read in a book. It was glaringly obvious who the killer was on from the minute he was introduced. Even up until the end, where it was even more obvious, and yet Gavin hadn't picked up on anything. That was a little irritating.
I could appreciate the epilogue. I still wanted a little more with these guys so I'm glad to see the next book is still with them.
Gavin went through some personal stuff early on that pulls at your heartstrings. You could tell he has an attraction to Ben right away. Ben is a therapist that is brought in because of his specialty in the BDSM community to help consult. These two really are perfect for each other.
What I didn't enjoy so much was the case aspect. Gavin really isn't a very smart detective. He's probably one of the worst I've read in a book. It was glaringly obvious who the killer was on from the minute he was introduced. Even up until the end, where it was even more obvious, and yet Gavin hadn't picked up on anything. That was a little irritating.
I could appreciate the epilogue. I still wanted a little more with these guys so I'm glad to see the next book is still with them.
wickedwitchofthewords's review
slow-paced
1.0
I just didn’t like it.
It was insufferably long.
The dynamic wasn’t as good as the author wanted us to think. Ben wasn’t a good Dom, he didn’t lead Gav into the life properly, he just kept fucking the closeted guy. Gav wasn’t really a good cop. The BDSM community wasn’t well written and realized .
The female characters in the book were there to be either hated by the reader or annoy the heck out of them.
I wanted to like it. I went in all excited. At 60% into the book I started skimming. By 80% I was skipping chapters and entire chunks of text.
It just didn’t work for me on any level.
It was insufferably long.
The dynamic wasn’t as good as the author wanted us to think. Ben wasn’t a good Dom, he didn’t lead Gav into the life properly, he just kept fucking the closeted guy. Gav wasn’t really a good cop. The BDSM community wasn’t well written and realized .
The female characters in the book were there to be either hated by the reader or annoy the heck out of them.
I wanted to like it. I went in all excited. At 60% into the book I started skimming. By 80% I was skipping chapters and entire chunks of text.
It just didn’t work for me on any level.