Adele
Damn, this was...kind of terrible. Far too long at 153 pages and full of the unsexiest, most overblown metaphors I've read in a decade. This should have been an erotic short with no romance aspirations. I did like that Tara was more than a collection of cliches - gentle and with a taste for intensity herself, not just an unfeeling fantasy Domme.
So lovely on a re-read. The autism/dyspraxia rep is nuanced, there's a real sense of time and place, the leads are well-rounded characters with their own issues who nonetheless work together beautifully. I had completely forgotten there's a D/s dynamic in their relationship - that aspect was just a joy to read and repeatedly put a big smile on my face. The crime plot is a little less to my taste and the conflict is a little infuriating, but overall I liked this much more now than six years ago.
It's true that all of their characters sound the same and are more benevolent than is often realistic to expect of other people. It's true that the prose is clunky in all its inclusivity. But these stories are so soft and validating that I am already sad about not having more of them to read. This one in particular felt cut short. It's a tragedy that Shocking Violet and their other WIPs will never see the light of day. RIP 🕯️
2024: no recollection of the story almost 9 years later, but given i shelved this as “made me smile” despite not liking the author's work in general at the time that much, i almost want to revisit.
July 8, 2025: revisited. It's well done, but my feelings on it are more complex this time. I don't super love that Corwin is so much younger and so vulnerable (couch-surfing with friends, apparently never felt loved) even if it is realistic, or that they all agree that the spanking he wants is just the thing he needs to get on top of his life and metal health. Still, it's a nice fantasy, and it's sweet and sensitively written for what it is. I do like that it captures the feelings involved realistically and without moralizing. Most of all it's just nice to read from the point of view of a caring and human Top.
This only ended up on my TBR because it was recommended by a few other woman Tops on the other site, but - though the book is short - I kind of reget taking the bait this time. I don't particularly care that the historical setting is but the thinnest curtain in the background. I do mind that the book is garish and obvious in all ways and the characters paper thin. The plot is 100% egregious, shallow miscommunication and the hero's internalized shame over being submissive - two things that are torturous to read about for me. The only things saving this from a straight 1* rating are that at least Eliza is not a sociopathic man-hating male fantasy of a Domme, and that, had the book been three times its actual length, with more interiority to the characters, her and Grayson's relationship could have been compelling.
The epitome of nice, for the most part. Gentle D/s, which can never be represented too often. The third-act breakup, however, is deeply unnecessary. If there needs to be conflict in a story, I'd have preferred it to be something internal or at least more organic. The third person present tense narration leaves little to the imagination, but at least it doesn't get in the way.
I always start these books thinking they're about to become favourites, and end up rating them somewhere in the 3-star range, mainly for reasons that feel technical but aren't quite. Here, the romance is gorgeously melancholy, the prose shines when it needs to, and the characters are intriguing. It's mainly uneven pacing and believability that pull the book down. The mystery is essential for the plot and relationship both, but somehow the whole still doesn't quite work - it relies heavily on coincidence/”fate” and definitely challenges my sensibilities, even though I like the leads together. The characters spend a lot of time wandering around the map, which should facilitate relationship development, but somehow doesn't; they get close and have lots of sex, but, having missed the beginning of the relationship, we miss what draws the leads emotionally together in the first place. And, they get their HEA only in the epilogue, and it doesn't convince. This should have been general historical fiction rather than genre romance. Still, I enjoyed my time with it, especially because it is so tonally unconventional for the story it is telling. I will be thinking about Song Yi for a long time.
I liked that this is told in first person & am eager for Wei-wei's story. But you can tell this was a struggle to write: its pacing is wildly uneven, the conclusion barely makes sense, and the moments meant to signal attraction between Wei-wei and Gao feel forced. Additionally, there are a number of typos.
Expertly done. The romance is subtle and gradual, the interpersonal tensions and the mystery keep the reader turning the pages. The prose is solid and occasionally insightful, the setting rendered confidently and with nuance. There's an excellent review of this here enumerating the book's many strengths and some of its weaknesses (gender essentialism chief among them - this author really likes her polar opposites, in more ways than one). I have little to add to it and remain uncertain as to why I didn't love this more.
Re-read because someone spoke highly of this & I was looking for a distraction. It's okay - I liked the descriptions of the effects of trauma, although that was over pretty quickly. Less fond of the hero, who plants a non-consensual kiss on the heroine in the beginning and seems immature throughout, which makes it hard to believe in their long-term happiness, however sweet they are together and however much the author labors to clear the numerous obstacles out of their way. The mystery is on the weak side as well. Lots to research on the setting after reading.
Takes on big topics in minimal essays. I appreciated the more personal bits (except for the poetry) but felt like overall this missed the mark on nuance. At one point Thom writes, “Too bad I don't write for Everyday Feminism anymore so that I could turn this into a viral listicle and get paid seventy-five bucks for twenty-five hours of writing”, and that's the tone of a lot of this book, complete with snarky parentheticals, which really does not suit the content. Lots of generalisations and not a lot to take home at the end of it. I expected more.
Historically significant but, despite its polemical nature, not the most affecting piece on the HIV/AIDS epidemic - at least, not when you merely read it. Performed, I'm sure it comes alive in a different way. Perhaps we need more people screaming like this in these days, though - it just can't be Kramer's brand of single-issue assimilationist rage. The “afterwords” are a weird act of hero-worship.
The last part on (physical) disability, pride and sexuality is the most personally significant to me and something I wish everyone would get, the parts on environmental issues and class solidarity in the current context are mainly incredibly depressing. Overall a worthwhile read but shows its age and is somewhat all over the place especially considering the brevity (Aurora Levins Morales' introduction promises the world and is pretty good). I would recommend reading this in text form rather than on audio as you're apparently missing out on updated footnotes and the narration isn't the clearest with citations.
