One of the things I like most about this book is that it shows two men discovering they like rough BDSM dominance/submission play to their sex, but neither one is at all expert or familiar with how it should work. Ben, coming off a breakup with an ex-lover who made him feel boring and inferior, comes alive as he finds his own strength and kinks. Shane, cocky and mouthy and struggling to keep a failing business afloat, is grounded and calmed by submission. They fit together, although it takes some fumbling to get past their early antagonism and the mistakes in how they see each other, and figure it out. I thought the occasional reversals were a nice touch, since the roles they were energized by, were opposite to their public personas.

Occasionally I was surprised that Ben, in particular, didn't research BDSM more, and move a bit more methodically with more emphasis on keeping safe (to match the way he was with seatbelts, for example.) It was hot to see his sudden realization of his needs, and the way that would drive him well out of his comfort zone, but once or twice,

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particularly with the pool cue episode

, it seemed as though he went further than I expected him to, without it being just in the heat of the moment. And sometimes Shane took something as dominance when I expected him to object,

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like being slapped for basically being a friendly barkeeper

. The reversal of roles was a nice touch, but a few bits of personality disappeared faster than I would have expected.

I really liked both of these guys, particularly Shane, and enjoyed the alternating POV. The secondary characters were good too, and I was interested enough in Vin to be happy when the end of the book included an obvious set-up for his book. The plot with the bar renovation forced the guys to be together a lot, and made the quick transition from angry sparks to sex to love plausible. The climax at the end was a bit contrived, but it allowed for some nice emotion. These two authors write smooth, interesting books with engaging characters.

This is really a 3.5. I would have rated it higher but some of the bdsm scenes were too borderline abusive and a bit of the a turn off. I really liked the characters and am looking forward to the sequel.

Wow! What an odd yet beautiful read. Benedict and Shane dragged me this way and that through such a strange romance. Had a little trouble at the beginning but when Benedict and Shane got together - whew!! flames shot out of my Kindle.

Not too down with the slapping, though.

. Some parts were uneven but the writing was spectacular. Some of the lines "the mood Benedict was in, he might pull out altogether and Shane would die, plain and simple, burn up from the inside, consumed by desire. Ink your name on me. Pierce me. Collar me. Anything. Just fuck me now." Awesome! Loved both MCs - upright Benedict with some hidden dominant stuff going on and Shane who totally threw me with his responses to Benedict. The roughness of their lovemaking, the sweetness of the discovery of their love and the circle of friends made this an engaging read. The end threw me. I was not expecting that but it worked. Looking forward to reading #s 2 and 3.

Reread

3.75 stars ⭐️

Reread
I enjoyed Ben and Shane’s story but I’m also in two minds about this one. While I liked the new to the BDSM aspect, the whole newness from both guys worried me. Neither really knew what they were doing. You had two guys who were trying something new and there was no safety net. That did worry me. But with that taken out I did enjoy the dance the guys put on getting to know each other.
Looking forward to Vin’s book.

Very decent m/m opposites-attract story, with good characterisation, a solid secondary cast and - the icing on the gingerbread - a plot involving management consultancy.

3.5 Stars