vasilas's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I like a few stories in the collection, particularly The Cure and the Scissors but most of them didn’t hit for me. Some of the writing I found boring and difficult to get through.
howlcoyotecody's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
cherryactually's review against another edition
3.0
i had high hopes after the first story, but after awhile it just became monotonous.
this book explored like two (maybe three) sadomasochism kinks, and some stories didn't even feel like they delved deep into them, but only mentioned them in passing or in a figurative-poetic-metaphorical sense.
as someone who has always been into bdsm, this just didn't hit the mark. like other readers mentioned, it's like a collective of amazing writers, but the result was subpar.
tl;dr - for a topic so exciting and versatile, it was boring for the most part.
this book explored like two (maybe three) sadomasochism kinks, and some stories didn't even feel like they delved deep into them, but only mentioned them in passing or in a figurative-poetic-metaphorical sense.
as someone who has always been into bdsm, this just didn't hit the mark. like other readers mentioned, it's like a collective of amazing writers, but the result was subpar.
tl;dr - for a topic so exciting and versatile, it was boring for the most part.
reading_rainbows's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this collection of stories, and most of them did not feel kink related. Consent was rarely practiced. I would not recommend this to help someone learn about kink as was intended according to the foreword. The stories feel like they were written by people not involved with the local kink community.
thebigfuzzy's review against another edition
2.0
This is a difficult one for me to review, mostly because I almost never read collections of short stories. But this collection appeared in the NYT as a notable book of 2021, and was then given to me as a gift, so I went in with high hopes and expectations.
To get it right out of the way, I'll say this: While each of these stories are in one way or another distinctly sexual, most of them are not erotic. This is not a book of porn. It's not really a book of literary short fiction either. Rather, this feels to me like a collection of stories that are determined to present BDSM as some alternative to religion. A practice of ascension that only those who practice it could ever hope to understand. That isn't to say that sex can't be defining or revelatory, but for the most part this collection comes off a bit self-aggrandizing.
There were a couple of stories that I enjoyed. "Scissors," "The Lost Performance of the High Priestess of the Temple of Horror," and "The Voyeurs" all stand out. Funnily enough, these three stories come one after another in the second half of the collection. But the rest either didn't stand out to me, or stood out in ways that I didn't appreciate.
I give this collection a 2 out of 5. I don't know if that's fair. I don't know how to rate a collection of short stories. The three stories I mention above all get 4 out of 5, but the collection as a whole left me pretty distinctly disappointed.
To get it right out of the way, I'll say this: While each of these stories are in one way or another distinctly sexual, most of them are not erotic. This is not a book of porn. It's not really a book of literary short fiction either. Rather, this feels to me like a collection of stories that are determined to present BDSM as some alternative to religion. A practice of ascension that only those who practice it could ever hope to understand. That isn't to say that sex can't be defining or revelatory, but for the most part this collection comes off a bit self-aggrandizing.
There were a couple of stories that I enjoyed. "Scissors," "The Lost Performance of the High Priestess of the Temple of Horror," and "The Voyeurs" all stand out. Funnily enough, these three stories come one after another in the second half of the collection. But the rest either didn't stand out to me, or stood out in ways that I didn't appreciate.
I give this collection a 2 out of 5. I don't know if that's fair. I don't know how to rate a collection of short stories. The three stories I mention above all get 4 out of 5, but the collection as a whole left me pretty distinctly disappointed.
ctrim's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
al_owl's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, Transphobia, Rape, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, Dysphoria, and Adult/minor relationship
cenielie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
thebookfangirl's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
I was really underwhelmed by a lot of these stories. They tended to drag and I felt myself skimming the pages at points. There were certain stories that I loved, which is why this book is a 2.5 but the good ones were few and far between. Also, I'm all for kink but when one story had a surprise incest plot... No, thank you. I'm glad this book has introduced me to more authors to check out and read their works.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dysphoria, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Blood, Body horror, Death of parent, Incest, and Sexual assault
pixe1's review against another edition
3.0
A couple of interesting stories and a few that felt interminable, so that the end result is a collection that feels a bit uneven.