I had a really really mixed feelings about this book after I finished it. I read it and I was just thinking "What the hell am I feeling right now??". I don''t regret reading this book because this is a refreshing idea and a new perspective on BDSM. Alison Tyler is a beautiful writer, her writing will keep you up all night. I can't compare this book to any other, not just because I haven't read a lot of bdsm books, but because I don't think there is another book similar and as powerful as this. I read that this story is not 100% fiction, there is an authors life right between those pages. Which made the book so much better, because it felt real. So sexual and raw. Punishing for pleasure and pleasure some with pain. The man character Samantha really captured me. I admit I couldn't really understand the need that Samantha had, the need for pain. But after finishing it, I understood. I can say that some dark parts of the book even turned me on, which was a surprise. I can honestly say that I did enjoy reading it. There were some things that were bothering me about this book, that is why I can't say that Dark Secret Love is amazing, but what I can say is that you should give it a chance. I feel like a lot of people will find this refreshing, especially if you like bdsm in your romance(; ( )

Please see my review from October 9th. The two reviews won't link.

Oh, this book. I hate this book so much. I picked it up because I heard Alison Tyler was a much better writer than many mainstream romance and erotica authors, and she is. She is a wonderful, talented writer. Unfortunately, she writes about exactly the same things that I take issue with in all romance and erotica books.

This one began with so much potential. She devoted a fair share of the first act to an unhealthy relationship and how she overcame it to find herself again. Everything seemed fresh, original and authentic, until act two.

Cue rich man who slaps her and makes her feel alive like no other. Cue him stalking her before she ever actually talked to him. Cue him having his staff move her car, move her possessions into his home, cue him possessing her by buying her things.

Is this the ultimate fantasy women share? Is this our modern suffrage movement - the freedom from autonomy in relationships? In this age of information, we have ten thousand shitty ebooks that glorify violence against women and the relinquishing of power to abusive men? Well hallelujah, the fucking enlightenment is upon us!

How could women be so culpable in their own subjugation? How is this a fantasy? I have no problem with some handcuffs, or spanking. I even understand that some people do enjoy pain in conjunction with sexual pleasure. But I do not understand people who say they want no control over their body or their life.

Tyler literally describes Jack as treating Samantha as a "pet." She knows not to dare sit next to him, but to fold herself up on the floor as he holds the leash attached to her color. He secretly watches her interact with other men to ensure she doesn't FLIRT, because that would violate her behavior laws (yet later forces her to seduce and kiss a waiter so he can punish her). He follows her on a trip to New York that is supposed to be about HER career. And of course she's glad he did, because she was "lonely" without him.

Does that sound familiar? Like Bella and Edward? Like Ana and Christian? Like Eva and Gideon?

Mostly, I take great issue with the fact that throughout the book, Samantha repeatedly "does not know" why she "needs" to feel pain. Get a therapist. Figure it out. If, at the end of the day, you decide you want to enter in to a relationship where you are expect to enhance the environment around someone else and nothing else, fine. But don't tell me you don't know why. Don't tell me you want this, or you need this. And for fuck's sake, could someone write a book with sex in it that has to do with something other than a rich man possessing a meek woman?

This is the book 50 Shades of Grey wishes it could be. Tyler's quasi-autobiographical account of the Doms she has submitted to is deeply sensual and sexy without being unbelievable. Tyler takes care to explain from a realistic point of view why a woman would be drawn to this kind of sexual practice. She does so without digressing or ranting, too, showing rather than telling the mindset of her main character (loosely based on herself). There isn't much of a plot, but there doesn't need to be. A fascinating and steamy exploration of the true BDSM scene. ( )

This book read like a journal or a diary. I liked that it was a look into her life as a Sub. The writers explains how Sam feels trying to fit in and not be ashamed of what pleases her. I would read more from this author to see where the relationship of Sam and Jack goes.
A short read. I received this book from LibraryThings in exchange for an honest review. ( )