amyl00wh00's review against another edition
4.0
Ooooh, man...
The serious talk:
I don't know what it is about Willow Madison's writing, but every time I read one of her books I feel like I'm embarking on an exploratory psychological study. I wasn't a Psych major, but if I had been, her books propose a fascinating, entertaining, and enlightening platform. In this book, (whether it is the author's intent, or not) I feel like I (as the reader) am being subtly forced to examine my own acceptance of a thing that, in general, I would say, "Ain't no way I'm toleratin' that shit!" In truth, however, (especially when exposed in a situation similar to boiling a frog) I keep saying, "Well, I'm gonna let that one slide." Then next time, I say, "Wellll... I'm gonna let that one slide, too," until eventually I land in a precarious situation which I'm too blind to get out of. Now, the difference here is that I'm being personally required to examine the distinctions via compare and contrast between a D/s relationship, and domestic abuse. What are the differentiations? Where is that line? Clearly, I gather all of this from only this single, first book in the series, as I have yet to move on to the second True book, therefore I'm unsure yet as to the differences, as well as unsure as to my personal feelings of acceptance regarding any of it.
Moving along.
That being said, I really like both of the main characters.
Generally, as a reader, I am exceptionally hard on the heroine. She's always too petulant, too stupid, too wanna-be-badass, too bitchy, too dramatic... *sighs* Here, I feel like she's well-rounded; like she just is, as a person, and that is a key characteristic in being able to witness the progression of her relationship with Max, as well as in aiding in my own (as the reader) acceptance, or lack of, said relationship. I like Lucy.
When it comes to the Hero, in any book I've ever read, I find I am always way more accepting and forgiving of his "flaws." Maybe this is because I generally think men are flawed creatures - an attribute they cannot help - and therefore we have no choice but to overlook it and move on; maybe I think men are just lost, most of the time, and need their bullshit overlooked as a show of my strength as a woman...? I don't know, but I am forgiving of the male character, and that is still true with Max, which, going back to my psychological rambling earlier, makes me take a good hard look at myself. As I read, I think, "If my husband did that I'd smash his knee-cap with an iron skillet." Lol Maybe that's why I'm forgiving of male book characters, because I'm less forgiving with real-life men...? HA!
But I digress...
Max is... not the stereotypical alphahole. Alphaholes are represented well in Kristen Ashley's books, Madeleine Sheehan's books, Nicole Jacquelyn does a good alpha... what Ms. Madison does here with Max is take the alphahole "quirk" to a whole new level. Max is not a mere alphahole; Max is: a Dominant. (Which loops me back around again to the technicalities of a psychological study.) Namely, I think many books of this genre label "alpha's" as "Dominants," paint fluffy little clouds over it, and call it a BDSM-type relationship between a Dom and his sub. What Ms. Madison does, I believe, is take an alpha, paint him as a Dom (right from the start), take the reader's hand, and lead us into observing what may be a beautiful, even if precarious relationship between a Dom and his sub. (Again, I have only read the first book, so I don't know where this is going to go.)
Very well done.
The serious talk:
I don't know what it is about Willow Madison's writing, but every time I read one of her books I feel like I'm embarking on an exploratory psychological study. I wasn't a Psych major, but if I had been, her books propose a fascinating, entertaining, and enlightening platform. In this book, (whether it is the author's intent, or not) I feel like I (as the reader) am being subtly forced to examine my own acceptance of a thing that, in general, I would say, "Ain't no way I'm toleratin' that shit!" In truth, however, (especially when exposed in a situation similar to boiling a frog) I keep saying, "Well, I'm gonna let that one slide." Then next time, I say, "Wellll... I'm gonna let that one slide, too," until eventually I land in a precarious situation which I'm too blind to get out of. Now, the difference here is that I'm being personally required to examine the distinctions via compare and contrast between a D/s relationship, and domestic abuse. What are the differentiations? Where is that line? Clearly, I gather all of this from only this single, first book in the series, as I have yet to move on to the second True book, therefore I'm unsure yet as to the differences, as well as unsure as to my personal feelings of acceptance regarding any of it.
Moving along.
That being said, I really like both of the main characters.
Generally, as a reader, I am exceptionally hard on the heroine. She's always too petulant, too stupid, too wanna-be-badass, too bitchy, too dramatic... *sighs* Here, I feel like she's well-rounded; like she just is, as a person, and that is a key characteristic in being able to witness the progression of her relationship with Max, as well as in aiding in my own (as the reader) acceptance, or lack of, said relationship. I like Lucy.
When it comes to the Hero, in any book I've ever read, I find I am always way more accepting and forgiving of his "flaws." Maybe this is because I generally think men are flawed creatures - an attribute they cannot help - and therefore we have no choice but to overlook it and move on; maybe I think men are just lost, most of the time, and need their bullshit overlooked as a show of my strength as a woman...? I don't know, but I am forgiving of the male character, and that is still true with Max, which, going back to my psychological rambling earlier, makes me take a good hard look at myself. As I read, I think, "If my husband did that I'd smash his knee-cap with an iron skillet." Lol Maybe that's why I'm forgiving of male book characters, because I'm less forgiving with real-life men...? HA!
But I digress...
Max is... not the stereotypical alphahole. Alphaholes are represented well in Kristen Ashley's books, Madeleine Sheehan's books, Nicole Jacquelyn does a good alpha... what Ms. Madison does here with Max is take the alphahole "quirk" to a whole new level. Max is not a mere alphahole; Max is: a Dominant. (Which loops me back around again to the technicalities of a psychological study.) Namely, I think many books of this genre label "alpha's" as "Dominants," paint fluffy little clouds over it, and call it a BDSM-type relationship between a Dom and his sub. What Ms. Madison does, I believe, is take an alpha, paint him as a Dom (right from the start), take the reader's hand, and lead us into observing what may be a beautiful, even if precarious relationship between a Dom and his sub. (Again, I have only read the first book, so I don't know where this is going to go.)
Very well done.
izzy_happyfornow's review against another edition
3.0
I received this for review.
I must say I kinda new going in this would be different. I'm torn writing this because I was on board with the darker romance parts of this until the very end.
Reading this book left me just as confused as the heroine. It's enthralling and super addictive, but be prepared and check my spoiler up there if you are nervous. It's definitely full of things people will hate like a POS main character, but not in the same way as other books.
I'm left thinking I will most likely have to read the rest of the series just for curiosities sake.
I must say I kinda new going in this would be different. I'm torn writing this because I was on board with the darker romance parts of this until the very end.
Spoiler
I couldn't believe the slapping part thoughReading this book left me just as confused as the heroine. It's enthralling and super addictive, but be prepared and check my spoiler up there if you are nervous. It's definitely full of things people will hate like a POS main character, but not in the same way as other books.
I'm left thinking I will most likely have to read the rest of the series just for curiosities sake.
mees_grows's review against another edition
1.0
I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, provided by the Author through the BDSM group on goodreads
First, I want to acknowledge that I went into this book knowing that there was "Dark discipline" as described by the author, was a part of the story.
There is a vast difference between "Dark Discipline" and abuse.
Abuse is done in anger, that is the defining line for me. Within the BDSM community acts should be "Safe, Sane, and Consensual". None of these things were present in the scene where Max slapped Lucy repeatedly. He committed the act while angry. This is also not appropriate, all discipline should be done as a part of the act in a consensual manner that adds to the sexual experience.
The second thing that disturbs me is the attempts of Max to isolate Lucy from her support system and job. Ordering her to take the day off work after he hit her so that others can't see her bruises. This is screams abuse to me and not BDSM.
First, I want to acknowledge that I went into this book knowing that there was "Dark discipline" as described by the author, was a part of the story.
There is a vast difference between "Dark Discipline" and abuse.
Abuse is done in anger, that is the defining line for me. Within the BDSM community acts should be "Safe, Sane, and Consensual". None of these things were present in the scene where Max slapped Lucy repeatedly. He committed the act while angry. This is also not appropriate, all discipline should be done as a part of the act in a consensual manner that adds to the sexual experience.
The second thing that disturbs me is the attempts of Max to isolate Lucy from her support system and job. Ordering her to take the day off work after he hit her so that others can't see her bruises. This is screams abuse to me and not BDSM.
beereina's review against another edition
2.5
Series rating 2⭐️
2.5🌶️ — mostly just for frequency. It’s pretty much vanilla and not at all descriptive. It’s not fade to black… but the scenes are super short. I don’t think they were written to arouse.
I really wanted to love this series but the ending pissed me off.
This whole review will likely contain spoilers for the entire series….. so proceed at your own risk.
So this reads like a portrait of a couple and while I didn’t like the romance… I was willing to stick it out. Max is horrible. He reminds me of Daren from the stronger series. But while I loved Daren, Max is lacking something that makes him a likeable antihero.
Max doesn’t just want control, he’s a bit of a sadist and he wants a 1950/ housewife. Let your inner feminist to take a huge back seat to get through this book. I like my romances dark and my Hero’s controlling and morally grey. But his demands that she cook, clean, quit her job, just felt super antiquated. And he didn’t have enough charm to make him likeable beyond being an asshole. Calvin from Descent didn’t love the FMC working but it wasn’t because he preferred her occupation to be his domestic servant. Same for Daren from Stronger. Max’s insistence that she quit her job to spend her days cooking and cleaning just felt like trash and pushed me over the edge in my tolerance to find him a likeable MMC.
Then we end book 3 on a cliffhanger and both available endings for book 4 are trash. I read the spoilers and I want no part of either. So given that…. It made my time reading this series feel wasted. First ending… she’s kidnapped and I guess unspeakable things happen to her but Max and Lucy end up together….. kidnapped by who!? For why!? This makes no sense. It’s dark for the sake of being dark and I refused to read it.
Other ending is Max dies and Lucy ends up with Jake. Also trash ending. If it’s a romance…. The MMC AND the FMC need A HEA. If Max is dead… there is no HEA for both. I’m mad I wasted my time.
And the spice was trash through out as well. It was frequent but not at all descriptive and aside from the spankings prior to the sex… it was vanilla.
2.5🌶️ — mostly just for frequency. It’s pretty much vanilla and not at all descriptive. It’s not fade to black… but the scenes are super short. I don’t think they were written to arouse.
I really wanted to love this series but the ending pissed me off.
This whole review will likely contain spoilers for the entire series….. so proceed at your own risk.
So this reads like a portrait of a couple and while I didn’t like the romance… I was willing to stick it out. Max is horrible. He reminds me of Daren from the stronger series. But while I loved Daren, Max is lacking something that makes him a likeable antihero.
Max doesn’t just want control, he’s a bit of a sadist and he wants a 1950/ housewife. Let your inner feminist to take a huge back seat to get through this book. I like my romances dark and my Hero’s controlling and morally grey. But his demands that she cook, clean, quit her job, just felt super antiquated. And he didn’t have enough charm to make him likeable beyond being an asshole. Calvin from Descent didn’t love the FMC working but it wasn’t because he preferred her occupation to be his domestic servant. Same for Daren from Stronger. Max’s insistence that she quit her job to spend her days cooking and cleaning just felt like trash and pushed me over the edge in my tolerance to find him a likeable MMC.
Then we end book 3 on a cliffhanger and both available endings for book 4 are trash. I read the spoilers and I want no part of either. So given that…. It made my time reading this series feel wasted. First ending… she’s kidnapped and I guess unspeakable things happen to her but Max and Lucy end up together….. kidnapped by who!? For why!? This makes no sense. It’s dark for the sake of being dark and I refused to read it.
Other ending is Max dies and Lucy ends up with Jake. Also trash ending. If it’s a romance…. The MMC AND the FMC need A HEA. If Max is dead… there is no HEA for both. I’m mad I wasted my time.
And the spice was trash through out as well. It was frequent but not at all descriptive and aside from the spankings prior to the sex… it was vanilla.
lifeinthebooklane's review against another edition
5.0
Now I know how my friends felt after reading this. I'm not quite sure just what I want/need to say.
So I've seen rave reviews and scathing reviews and I can see how both have merit, because this deals with a D/s relationship that verges on the abusive. The deciding factor for me was that Lucy chose Max, even knowing what might be instore for her (more on this later). There are a lot of things about Max to dislike, but none of that is due to bad writing or bad characterisation. In fact I'm pretty certain this is a deliberate move by the author and it certainly had me questioning his morals AND my morals at times. You don't have to like Max to enjoy this story, in fact I'm firmly in camp "toss his ass to the kerb" at the moment. I'm looking forward to seeing how this story unfolds and experiencing the journey it takes me on.
I liked Lucy, she was sometimes confused by her reactions, and struggled with her unexpected responses to Max. To quote her directly "My brain said to run, my body said to stay, my heart... my heart was afraid to decide." There were times she felt a little weak BUT that's from my perspective of knowing I could never be that submissive in a relationship. It was what Lucy craved, so if it was OK for her, who am I to judge? Between SSC, RACK and mind-your-own-goddamn-business, no one decides on someone else's relationship.
Max knew exactly what type of relationship he wanted, it verged on a Master/slave one. He pretty much wanted to dictate Lucy's entire life, at times it felt almost to the point of what she thought. And however much my modern, liberated woman brain screams against that, if it is what works for the couple involved it is no-one else's business. We did get an insight into why he feels the way he does, and whilst it doesn't excuse some of his behaviour, it does explain it and allow us to understand his motivations.
What did cause problems for me is that in that particular dynamic the welfare of the sub/slave should be paramount to the Dom/Master. Her needs should be met and her safety, both physical and mental, taken care of. Max was sometimes a thoughtless, selfish, ignorant ass and I severely wanted to kick his behind on more than one occasion. If he wants total control of her he has a responsibility for her welfare, ones that he frequently seems to shirk. For example, despite knowing how overwhelmed Lucy is at meeting his parents for the first time, despite knowing she needs his support, he sends her to help in the kitchen and later on orders her around like his skivvie, despite her not having agreed to a "dynamic" style of relationship at that point. He also ignores her distress "I stand up and Lucy gives me a pleading look." and her pain "I can't... I'm too sore." (for more sex). He is either totally responsible for Lucy or he isn't. But it can't only be when it suits him. It was also that he revelled in her fear. She should fear a punishment but not because of the pain it causes but because of the disturbance to their dynamic. And should Max really enjoy her fear in those situations? Hmmmm........
So getting back to the "might" from earlier. I did feel that at the end this did stray into the area of dubious consent, when Max punished Lucy before he had discussed consequences of actions - particularly when she hadn't been punished for it previously. However when given the choice she DID decide to stay. Whether she is staying in a consensual relationship or an abusive one remains to be seen in the next book. I'm buying and reading it right away.
So I've seen rave reviews and scathing reviews and I can see how both have merit, because this deals with a D/s relationship that verges on the abusive. The deciding factor for me was that Lucy chose Max, even knowing what might be instore for her (more on this later). There are a lot of things about Max to dislike, but none of that is due to bad writing or bad characterisation. In fact I'm pretty certain this is a deliberate move by the author and it certainly had me questioning his morals AND my morals at times. You don't have to like Max to enjoy this story, in fact I'm firmly in camp "toss his ass to the kerb" at the moment. I'm looking forward to seeing how this story unfolds and experiencing the journey it takes me on.
I liked Lucy, she was sometimes confused by her reactions, and struggled with her unexpected responses to Max. To quote her directly "My brain said to run, my body said to stay, my heart... my heart was afraid to decide." There were times she felt a little weak BUT that's from my perspective of knowing I could never be that submissive in a relationship. It was what Lucy craved, so if it was OK for her, who am I to judge? Between SSC, RACK and mind-your-own-goddamn-business, no one decides on someone else's relationship.
Max knew exactly what type of relationship he wanted, it verged on a Master/slave one. He pretty much wanted to dictate Lucy's entire life, at times it felt almost to the point of what she thought. And however much my modern, liberated woman brain screams against that, if it is what works for the couple involved it is no-one else's business. We did get an insight into why he feels the way he does, and whilst it doesn't excuse some of his behaviour, it does explain it and allow us to understand his motivations.
What did cause problems for me is that in that particular dynamic the welfare of the sub/slave should be paramount to the Dom/Master. Her needs should be met and her safety, both physical and mental, taken care of. Max was sometimes a thoughtless, selfish, ignorant ass and I severely wanted to kick his behind on more than one occasion. If he wants total control of her he has a responsibility for her welfare, ones that he frequently seems to shirk. For example, despite knowing how overwhelmed Lucy is at meeting his parents for the first time, despite knowing she needs his support, he sends her to help in the kitchen and later on orders her around like his skivvie, despite her not having agreed to a "dynamic" style of relationship at that point. He also ignores her distress "I stand up and Lucy gives me a pleading look." and her pain "I can't... I'm too sore." (for more sex). He is either totally responsible for Lucy or he isn't. But it can't only be when it suits him. It was also that he revelled in her fear. She should fear a punishment but not because of the pain it causes but because of the disturbance to their dynamic. And should Max really enjoy her fear in those situations? Hmmmm........
So getting back to the "might" from earlier. I did feel that at the end this did stray into the area of dubious consent, when Max punished Lucy before he had discussed consequences of actions - particularly when she hadn't been punished for it previously.
Spoiler
He slapped around the face, twice without warning and once after he gave her an option to leave the relationship or accept the slap.
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