paigeno's review against another edition
adventurous
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Body horror, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
caffeinatedfae's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
CW: Mention of Rape, humiliation play, mention of blood play, mention of needle play, Knife play, Spitting, incest, cheating, Coercion, Gaslighting, Graphic Sexual Assault, Graphic Assault, Transphobia, consensual body shaming, Violating negotiated scenes.
Like all anthologies, there are good stories and not-so-good stories. Unfortunately, there were more "meh" stories than good ones. Most of the stories were well written with some interesting characters and plots. I enjoyed that there were a variety of bodies & sexualities, but the kink aspect was subpar.
Maybe it's because I read romance and erotica, but this book didn't sit well with me. Some stories were good, but the majority of them were incredibly disappointing. It was as if most of the authors were against kink itself. Instead, they wanted to do the stereotypical "kink is dangerous" stories. They showed the raw, gritty dangerous side that the media often portrayed and skipped over anything that would be considered erotic or kink positive. It was just so disappointing to read. This is not a book I would recommend to anyone. No, kink is not always glamorous, but I wanted something more positive or something that didn't read like a scare campaign against kink.
Like all anthologies, there are good stories and not-so-good stories. Unfortunately, there were more "meh" stories than good ones. Most of the stories were well written with some interesting characters and plots. I enjoyed that there were a variety of bodies & sexualities, but the kink aspect was subpar.
Maybe it's because I read romance and erotica, but this book didn't sit well with me. Some stories were good, but the majority of them were incredibly disappointing. It was as if most of the authors were against kink itself. Instead, they wanted to do the stereotypical "kink is dangerous" stories. They showed the raw, gritty dangerous side that the media often portrayed and skipped over anything that would be considered erotic or kink positive. It was just so disappointing to read. This is not a book I would recommend to anyone. No, kink is not always glamorous, but I wanted something more positive or something that didn't read like a scare campaign against kink.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Gore, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Body shaming
hybridpubscout's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Gore, Excrement, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Transphobia, and Violence
lovelyandmorbid's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
3.0
All of these stories are very well written but they didn't really fit the theme. Most of the stories were only tangentially kinky and basically all of them were sad or melancholic? Pretty much every story had characters that were unsatisfied either emotionally or sexually and because they were short stories, that feeling never really resolves. Or worse, they center violence. One had a rape scene, several others had gore and death.
I rolled my eyes at the idea of "literary fiction writers writing about kink" because erotica and romance very lively genres that do kink perfectly well but the one rule in romance is happy endings and I don't think any of these stories were happy. Overall, it felt more like a sexual horror collection. The writing had this book comfortably at a 4 stars for most of the reading experience but by the end, I kind of felt, like, what is the point? Kink wasn't even centered in lots of the stories, and when it was, it wasn't really in a positive light. While I liked many of the stories, this collection felt unnecessary by the end.
I rolled my eyes at the idea of "literary fiction writers writing about kink" because erotica and romance very lively genres that do kink perfectly well but the one rule in romance is happy endings and I don't think any of these stories were happy. Overall, it felt more like a sexual horror collection. The writing had this book comfortably at a 4 stars for most of the reading experience but by the end, I kind of felt, like, what is the point? Kink wasn't even centered in lots of the stories, and when it was, it wasn't really in a positive light. While I liked many of the stories, this collection felt unnecessary by the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Hate crime, Rape, and Transphobia
caseythereader's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Confinement, Deadnaming, Drug use, Gore, Xenophobia, Transphobia, Sexual assault, Self harm, and Incest
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