R. C. Graham

Ropes & Roses is a collection of 9 short bdsm erotica stories, told in first person point of view, the male dominant perspective to be precise.

I have noticed that much of the recently published bdsm erotica (as defined by what you find on Amazon searching for these terms) seems to be written by women for women. Perhaps not surprising then that the point of view used is predominanly that of a female submissive.
The male dominant voice is scarcely found in this genre, or when it is, it is usually in the emotionless (and unrealistic) bdsm smut depiction that seems intended for one-handed reading only.
Not so for Ropes & Roses.

The nine stories of Ropes & Roses are full of atmosphere and emotion. The intense feelings that come with the dominance-submission interaction is very prominent in the text. So far from being emotionless, you can read and feel the fascination, adoration, love and desire of the dominant for his submissive throughout these stories.

Both the dominants and the submissives in these stories come across as real people, which is also a bonus in my reckoning. You know the ones who have lives outside of their sexual life? The people who have actually formed a commitment to one another, because they love each other and just happen to be kinky people as well? The women who have a job, the men who are not afraid to do housekeeping?
Can I just say what a relief it is to not find trembling virgins with such deeply hidden bdsm desires that they didn't know they had them themselves (well okay, there's one, but she's probably not a virgin), for once. The women in these stories have had and liked sex before, and they know that they want to submit to their dominant.
What a relief it is to find a dominant who is secure in his dominance as well. No doubts here ala 'Ooh, how sick am I to be doing this awful hurting impact play to a woman I love, you know what I'll just redeem myself and stop.'
What a relief!

Then there's the themes of the stories themselves. Some of them draw on bdsm fantasy themes I'm willing to bet most bdsm kinky people have used in their fantasies or roleplaying. Recognize the secretary, the clergyman for instance? But the way the author interprets these themes is interesting and realistic rather than adding bore to trope. Others take ordinary life occurrences, such as a birthday, or coming home stressed out and grumpy from work. Still others take up the community aspect of a kinky lifestyle. All of it firmly lodged in the realm of reality and possibility, albeit it with a healthy dose of literary fantasy.

I would say the common factor in all of these stories is the emotive realism of the bdsm practices described. These are stories for and about real bdsm kinky people, written in pleasant prose from the male dominant point of view, edited to a high standard.
What's not to like about that? I loved them. Recommended!… (más)