mild kink

This Man by Jodi Ellen Malpas

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

This Man (This Man, #1)
Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-Mild Kink
Series-This Man#1
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay

I really liked the premise of this book, even though the premise has flooded the market. I had bought the book awhile back so I felt obligated to read it.

Ava is an interior decorator somewhere in England and Jesse is an uber-rich man who hires her to decorate The Manor. She goes to meet him out of curiosity since his apparent tastes don’t really match what he does. She finds him insanely attractive but a bit of a player. He finds her beautiful but aloof. She tries to back out of the job but he won’t hear of it. This starts Jessie’s pursuit and seduction of Ava.

Jesse is super controlling, stalkerish and obsessive. Some of those things I can deal with and others…no. I found him extremely alpha and not in a good way. While the sex was hot it felt way too quick. They were doing things Ava had never done right away. I just couldn’t buy into it. My biggest complaint is totally a personal preference one. I hated his use of the word lady. I know the author is British but it grated my nerves so badly. I don’t think I need to read anymore in this series.

M/M Monday – Wallflower by Heidi Belleau

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Wallflower (Rear Entrance Video, #2)

Grade: B
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Mild Kink
Genre: Contemporary, m/m
Series: Rear Entrance Video #2
Published: 10/21/13
Reviewed by Anne
206 pages
Rob is a college art student.  He’s a very shy nerd and enjoys gaming online.  He’s gay (but still in the closet) and he has a crush on one of his roomates (who happens to be straight.)  Rob just started working at Rear Entrance Video, a store that rents porn movies and sells sex toys.  He also fantasizes about dressing up like a woman and he’s really not sure what to do with those thoughts.
Dylan is a confident, tall, and big man.  He’s in one of Rob’s classes, he frequents the video store and he’s also gay.
This story is about how Rob and Dylan meet and what happens between the two of them, but it is much more about Rob coming to terms with himself.  It was a story that grabbed me and I didn’t want to put it down.  It was very interesting to think through how Rob felt as he considered spending time as “Bobby” and what that would and wouldn’t mean to him.  It’s not an easy path for Rob to walk; some of that is due to other people in his life, and some of it is due to his own hang ups.
I enjoyed Rob/Bobby’s growth throughout the story.  His choices on how to deal with things led to a precarious situation which was scariest because I could see how easily it could be true, and not without the happy ending this story had.  That was a sad reality to consider.  It was really a high to see Rob come to terms with himself, though – totally worth the angst that came before it!
I do imagine that this story was a little sweeter than real life would be for someone in Rob’s situation.  Only one asshole picked on Bobby.  Of all his friends and relatives, only one had a hard time with him coming out.  Dylan and his parents were all very understanding of what Rob/Bobby was going though.  I think real life is probably a bit more painful.  That’s not a criticism of the story, but a nod to the fact that this is the kind of HEA/HFN the book has.
The biggest criticism I have of the story is that the romance between Rob and Dylan felt very much like insta-love once they had sex.  They went from hating each other to loving each other pretty darn quickly.  I also found Dylan’s nickname for Rob (Puny) to be annoying, but I know I’m being overly sensitive on that front.
I do have to give bonus points to any story with references to Twilight AND Flowers in the Attic.  It’s also got a well adjusted and happy adopted character with adoptive parents who are lovely – all this while acknowledging the challenges of being adopted.
Overall this was a good read.  It made me think about gender in ways I hadn’t before, and I enjoyed it.  The romance was a bit rushed, but it still worked for me.  I recommend this book and I think I’ve found a new author and new series on the m/m side of things.

So Tough to Tame by Victoria Dahl

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

So Tough to Tame (Jackson, #3)

 
Grade: B
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Mild Kink
Genre: Contemporary, cowboy
Series: Jackson #3
Published: 9/24/13
Reviewed by Anne
376 pages
 
Charlie and Walker were friends in high school when geeky Charlie tutored the very popular Walker.  They went their separate ways, but now they have apartments across the hall from each other and they are both recovering from awful on the job experiences that ended with being fired.  Neither has troubles starting a new job, and neither is admitting to anyone that anything bad happened.  It’s like a high school reunion.  I’m great!  I’m so happy!  I just moved on to a wonderful job!
 
The attraction that had simmered between them in high school flares up again and now they are adults free to act on that attraction.  Neither is looking for anything long term, so it all should be great, right?
 
This was a good story.  I thought the characters were unique and more flawed than I’m used to reading.  They were each hiding the truth of themselves from the other, which bordered on annoying.  However, this set up worked for me.  They were both so embarrassed about their pasts because they were responsible for the poor choices they’d made.  This made for more angst than I usually like to read, but, again, it really worked in this story.
 
Walker is a really refreshing hero in a genre that seems full of billionaire CEOs and over achievers.  His life is simple, in part because he doesn’t think he can achieve more, and in part because that’s how he likes it.  Walker does make some changes over the course of the book, but the changes are motivated by his own happiness, not out of a desire to impress someone else.
 
Charlie was interesting, too.  A security expert who wasn’t a strong physical force.  She specializes in out-thinking criminals and setting up monitoring systems.  The situation she finds herself in on her new job – feeling like she’s being watched every moment of the day – was really creepy!  (Although I should point out that I’m not a huge suspense fan, so even a little bit of it is creepy to me!)
 
I think one of my favorite parts of the book was that their personal growth was in parallel, and not caused by the other person being in their life.  Even when Charlie tries to interfere with Walker, he’s not going to move on things until he’s ready.  I enjoyed that as opposed to magic sex that heals all wounds!
I thought the ending was a little too hearts and sunshine with respect to their careers, but I REALLY appreciated that the wedding in the epilogue wasn’t theirs.  They still have issues to work through, in my opinion, but you leave the story sure that they will work things out.  This was an enjoyable and funny contemporary romance!