THE TWELFTH DEPARTMENT: ARC REVIEW AND GIVE-AWAY

TITLE: THE TWELFTH DEPARTMENT

AUTHOR: WILLIAM RYAN

Pages: 466

Date: 08/04/2013

Grade: 5+

Details: no. 3 Captain Korolev mystery

            ARC received from Mantle

            Release date: 23/05/2013

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Captain Korolev of the Moscow Militia is supposed to have a week off when his son Yuri comes to visit him. Unfortunately arrangements like that are never certain in Moscow in the 1930’s and the day after his son’s arrival Korolev finds himself ordered to investigate the murder of an eminent scientist. Because the murdered man had close connections to those in power this is going to be a sensitive investigation, but it doesn’t become clear how sensitive until Korolev and his Sergeant, Slivka, are called off the case again within 24 hours. Korolev’s opportunity to spend time with his son doesn’t last very long though. Yuri and Korolev have only enjoyed one day in the country together when two State Security agents come to pick him up and bring him back to Moscow. Yuri flees from the threatening looking and sounding men and Korolev is brought back to Moscow not knowing where his twelve year old son is or whether he is safe.

Back in Moscow Korolev discovers that a second man has been murdered, the assistant of the first victim, and that he is back on the investigation. This time though he’ll be working for State Security rather than the Militia. With two competing State Security departments having a vested interest in the investigation and the outcome, Korolev finds himself a pawn in their power-struggles. With Yuri now captured by one of those departments, it seems that our investigator has no choices if he wants to see his son again. Korolev finds himself breaking his own rules, fighting his conscience and depending on questionable allies in order to bring the whole affair to a conclusion he can live with.

Wow, all I can say is ‘wow’! This is an amazing book with a fascinating story.

As he did in his two previous Korolev books, William Ryan has managed to impress and captivate me. He writes wonderfully plotted mysteries but it is the setting and the historical detail that make these books true works of genius. This is a mystery/thriller so you’d expect the tension that results from the crimes under investigation and the intrigue around who might be guilty of them. But with the story set in Moscow in 1937 where Stalin’s Great Terror is in full swing, there is a lot more suspense. There is the constant menace and fear resulting from the characters living in a society where nobody is innocent of anything, a place where a good man is afraid to do an honest job because the results he may come up with might not satisfy his superiors. And William Ryan does a brilliant job showing this underlying threat in all its horrifying glory. All Korolev wants to do is solve the crimes he’s ordered to investigate. He doesn’t want to get involved in politics and yet finds himself, time and again, trying to balance his conscience with the safety of those around him and himself.

A lesser author might have taken this setting to write a story in which the fear and suspense are unrelenting. Ryan however knows that life and people don’t work that way. Even in a totalitarian society, where danger lurks around every corner and the wrong expression on your face could get you arrested, people have to live their lives; they still fall in love, make jokes and worry about the little stuff. The fact that Korolev does just that, even while his whole life is in turmoil, makes this character and his story more realistic and captivating. In the midst of all the tension there are lighter moments such as:

“If murders could be committed without producing corpses then he’d be a happier detective.”

Picture taken from author's Facebook page

Or there is the chapter set in Moscow Zoo. While it plays an important part in the overall story, it also gives us a nice insight into Korolev’s private life and his feelings. I loved the scene involving the elephant and the children’s fascination with the lions and their feeding habits is something every parent will recognise. But most of all I loved that the Zoo Keeper mentioned in the story, Vera, is a real person, who lived and worked there at the time.

There is a wonderful balance as far as the characters in these books are concerned as well. We get our fair share of scary party officials, which is to be expected given the setting of the story, but we also encounter Count Kolya, the Chief Authority of the Moscow Thieves and his niece, Sergeant Slivka who is Korolev’s colleague. And the relationship that is slowly developing between Korolev and Valentina, the woman he shares an apartment with, is a delight to watch.

I could go on gushing about this book indefinitely but I won’t. I’ll end this review with this advice: Go and get the book, read it and be enthralled. If you haven’t read The Holy Thief and The Bloody Meadow yet I’d advise you to read them first. Having said that, it isn’t necessary to have read those two books in order to enjoy The Twelfth Department.

ARC give-away:

Because I managed to end up with two ARC copies of The Twelfth Department I find myself in the fortunate position where I can give one of them away. If you are interested just leave a comment below. I will pick a winner at random on the 23^rd of April, exactly one month before the book will be released.

FORBIDDEN FIRES

TITLE: FORBIDDEN FIRES

AUTHOR: Jodie Griffin

Pages: 139

Date: 06/04/2013

Grade: 4.5

Details: no. 3 Bondage & Breakfast

            Received from Carina Press

            Through NetGalley     

Own/Kindle

The Blurb:

A year ago, Detective Delia Robinson and Fire Marshal Colin Butler got up close and personal while working a case. But their sizzling relationship didn’t last. Now there’s a serial arsonist on the loose, and it’s up to Delia and Colin to bring him down—if they can resist their attraction long enough to concentrate on the investigation.

Delia quickly sees the connection between the crime scenes: elements of BDSM. Though she denies it, Colin is stunned by the realization that his former lover is aroused by the idea of bondage play. And suddenly he can’t stop fantasizing about being the one to bind her…

Unsure how Colin would react, Delia never revealed her desire to be dominated in the bedroom. But she’ll finally have the chance to find out when they go deep undercover—as a married couple at a B&B offering classes in domination and submission…

From the moment Colin and Delia meet again after not having seen each other for a year it is clear that the attraction between them is still strong. On the other hand both of them were wounded by the way in which their two month relationship ended back then, and are reluctant to give in to their desires for fear that they’ll only break their hearts again. Determined to be professional they set out to investigate a string of arson attacks and ignore their feelings. The fact that the case seems to have sexual if not kinky undertones doesn’t make this easy though. Delia’s desire to be dominated by Colin is as strong as it was a year ago, when she couldn’t find the words to tell him about her fantasies and Colin can’t stop his mind from imagining the beautiful redhead naked and in his arms.

Although BDSM is not something Colin has ever even thought, never mind fantasized about, he can’t help being intrigued by the idea once he notices how it affects Delia. The undercover mission to a training session in the Bed & Breakfast specializing in BDSM and the instruction they receive there doesn’t only exceed every fantasy Delia ever had, it also awakens in Colin a deep desire to dominate Delia. With an arsonist closing in on the B&B, and them, our two investigators have to make sure they keep their minds on their job though, no matter how distracting their new found sexual compatibility might be.

This was my second visit to the wonderful place that is Bondage & Breakfast, and once again I enjoyed my stay with Master Gabriel McConnell. Like Forbidden Desires, this book is a wonderful love story with strong sexual undertones. The attraction between the two main characters is so strong that it jumps of the page and their reluctance to give into it makes perfect sense given the heartbreak they’ve both been through with each other in the past. And, as in the previous title in this series, there is a lot more to this story than just an excuse to write lots of sexy scenes (although there are plenty of those and boy are they steamy). There is a great balance between the arson investigation, Colin and Delia struggling with their feelings and their sexual encounters. The dialogue between our two main characters sparkles and sounds real and their feelings come across as realistic rather than contrived.

To say I got pulled into this story would be an understatement. Once Colin and Delia get to the B&B and start their BDSM training together I found myself so submerged in their scene that I completely forgot there was a mystery to be solved. Just like Colin and Delia I had a ‘oh, that’s right we’re here to investigate arson’ moment once the scene was over.

While this is definitely an erotic romance there is, I feel, nothing in the book to offend or upset anybody (too) much. And I appreciate that Jodie Griffin makes a good and important distinction between BDSM and abuse in this book. That, in my mind, is a message that can’t be repeated often enough. Griffin is not out to shock or even lecture the reader though; she gives us a wonderful and romantic story with added value.

This is a light, sexy and entertaining read written by someone who knows how to use her words to draw the reader in and keep them hooked until the very last page. It is high time that I went back and read the first book in this series: Forbidden Pleasures. I also hope that Jodie Griffin will continue with this series and maybe, one day, give Gabriel McConnell his own story and his own happy ending. After all, he could run his B&B and give his training with a partner at least as well as he does on his own. And I have gotten quite fond of him after reading these books. In fact, I can’t stop fantasizing about paying a visit to McConnell and his very special B&B. Anybody got the address for me?

MY LIFE IN BOOKS

As you may have noticed, a lot of the books I review on this blog were sent to me through Nudge. Recently they asked me to answer a few question and describe my reading life in that way. I thought it would be nice to share my answers here as well.

My Life in Books:

I really like the idea of sharing my life in books with others in this way, although I already know that some of the questions below are going to be next to impossible to answer. And before I start on those answers I have to mention that I won’t exactly be sharing my whole life. Since I grew up in Holland I didn’t start reading English books until I was into my teens. It doesn’t make sense to share Dutch authors and books (especially if they were never translated) with people who have never heard of them so where appropriate I will change the wording of these questions a little bit. For example: “Which was the first ‘grown-up’ book you remember reading” will for me read as “Which was the first English ‘grown-up’ book you remember reading?”

1. Have you always loved books? Were you encouraged to read from an early age?

I have loved books for as long as I can remember and if photos and stories are to be believed, even longer than that. There are tons of pictures of me as a toddler, sitting on a lap and being read to. One photo I specifically remember (but don’t own) features a cloth-book about dogs, being read to me by my mother. There are also pictures of me raiding my parent’s bookcase; emptying the shelves and pretending to read the books. Cute for sure, but rather frustrating for my parents since they would have to re-shelve all the books, in the right order of course.

My brother and I were always encouraged to read. Every excuse available was used to bring us to a bookshop to pick out a few more books. No birthday or Christmas was complete unless there was at least one reading present. Report cards from school – good, bad or indifferent -, the start of any holidays, all were reasons to buy more books. In Holland there are two events dedicated to books every year. There’s the “Book Week” as well as the “Childrens’ Book Week.” In theory my brother and I were allowed to pick a few books during the children’s event while the general week was my parents’ opportunity. In practice it just meant that us kids were allowed to get new books on both occasions.

2. Which was the first 'grown-up' book you remember reading? How did it affect you?

The first ‘grown-up’ book I read in English was “A Cat Among the Pigeons” by Agatha Christie. I think I must have been about 15 at the time and we were on a family holiday in Norway. When I ran out of reading material long before our trip was over my parents allowed me to buy and try this book to see if I would be able to manage it. And I was; I loved the mystery and was very proud of myself for being able to read an adult title in a foreign language long before that was expected of me in school.

3. Choose five favourite books and tell us how they have impacted on you.

The following selection, like the one made for question 4, is rather arbitrary. If you were to ask me the same questions next week I might well come up with different answers.

• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: a deeply moving book about WWII that I loved despite the fact that I vowed years ago to never read a book about that period again.

• The Mists of Avalon by Marion Bradley Zimmer: the story of King Arthur from the perspective of the women. Very well written and a book I tend to go back to every few years.

• Es Waren Ihrer Sechs (Six of Them) by Alfred Neumann: a fictionalized account of the 1943 White Rose protest against Hitler and Nazism, and the subsequent arrest, trial, and execution of the six organizers, written by Neumann based on little more than hearsay accounts published in Time magazine. I read this book about the "White Rose" movement in Germany during WW II for my German exam about 30 years ago and it made an everlasting impression on me. (I realize this is not an English book, despite what I wrote above, but this book made such an impression on me that I couldn’t leave it off my list. Besides, there is an English translation of this title and the book was written while the author lived in America).

• The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien: the best fantasy story ever.

• Anne Frank’s Diary; just amazing.

 

4. Choose five favourite authors and your favourite book by each.

• Maeve Binchy because of the talented way in which she was able to capture and describe characters. After finishing any of her books I would always feel as if I knew the characters personally and sad to have to leave them. “Light a Penny Candle” is not necessarily my favourite book by her – I’d be hard pressed to pick just one – but it is the title that started my life long love affair with her novels.

• Michael Connelly because he writes the most amazing thriller-mysteries, well plotted and featuring realistic and fascinating characters. My favourite title by him is probably “The Poet”.

• Nora Roberts/J.D. Robb, my go to author whenever I need a comfort read or find myself in a reading-slum. Her stories flow, her characters sparkle and she always manages to evoke emotions in me. I really can’t pick one favourite title by her so I’d have to say that my favourite books by her are the Eve Dallas “In Death” mysteries.

• David Eddings and especially his series called “The Belgariad” because of the wonderful, fairytale like, story with characters that I came to love.

• Tiffany Reisz, although so far she has only published three full-length novels. Her books are hard to define; they’re definitely erotic but strictly speaking not erotica. Her Original Sinners series is clever, provocative and addictive. It’s hard to choose my favourite from the three titles out at the moment so I’ll mention the first in the series: “The Siren”.

 

5. Do you read more fiction or non-fiction?

I read almost exclusively fiction. And, when I do read non-fiction, it tends to be reading and/or writing related. Reading is a form of escapism for me rather than a way of acquiring information and there is no better way to escape the real world than by diving into a good, fictional, story.

6. Where do you find out about the books you want to read?

I am very fortunate in that I work in a library. Not only do I have first choice when new books come into my branch, I also receive lots of information on upcoming releases as part of my work. I also get information from the LibraryThing list provided by Nudge and the emails I receive from them of course. NetGalley is an other valuable source of information about upcoming books as are all the publishers, blogs, readers and authors I follow on Facebook and Twitter. If anything I’ve got too much information about new books coming my way. After all, you know what they say: “so many books, so little time”.

7. What was the last book you read, what are you currently reading, and what's next?

The last book I read was “No Way Back” by Matthew Klein, a dark and intriguing thriller in which nothing and nobody is what they appear to be. Currently I’m reading an erotic romance called “Forbidden Fires” by Jodie Griffin. I think my next book may be “The Twelfth Department” by William Ryan. This is the third book in a mystery series set in Stalinist Russia and I’m really looking forward to it.

 

NO WAY BACK

TITLE: NO WAY BACK

AUTHOR: MATTHEW KLEIN

Pages: 392

Date: 03/04/2013

Grade: 4

Details: Received from Corvus Books

           Through Nudge.

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Jimmy Thane is a human disaster zone. His past is littered with stupid mistakes and fatal decisions. He has been clean for over two years after spending years addicted to everything a man can be addicted to; drink, drugs, women, you name it Jimmy Thane has abused it. And in the middle of all that self-destructive behaviour his five year old son died, a death he blames himself for. So Jimmy Thane should be grateful; grateful that his wife is still with him and grateful that an old friend has offered him one last opportunity to redeem himself professionally. He has been given seven weeks to save a failing software company from certain bankruptcy; seven weeks to do what appears to be impossible.

But from the moment Jimmy Thane starts his new job things feel wrong. When he arrives at the company the place is nearly deserted. The former CEO has disappeared without a trace under mysterious circumstances and the fact that somebody has been cheating the company out of several millions is so glaringly obvious that even a blind person should have been able to see it. And that is just as far as his work is concerned. At home things aren’t right either. Thane’s wife, Libby, is behaving strangely. She disappears from their house without any explanation and appears to be either afraid or angry most of the time. And while he knows that he should be grateful that she is still with him, Thane can’t explain why she is behaving the way she is right now.

With the FBI investigating the disappearance of his predecessor, the disturbing find of a huge amount of money in an abandoned house and the friend who gave him the job more or less asking him to not notice everything that is wrong with the software company, Thane knows he has landed himself in a position where he could lose everything. Who is his mysterious neighbour who appears to be keeping an eye on him while avoiding actually meeting him? Why is he the only patient of the shrink he visits? And why is his wife actively discouraging him from investigating what exactly is going on in the company he is trying to save?

The truth is more shocking than Jimmy Thane could ever have imagined.

Actually, scrap that last line; the truth is more shocking than the reader could ever have imagined. This is one of those thrillers where absolutely nothing is what it appears to be; the sort of book where every revelation only leads to more questions.

“No Way Back” is the ultimate page-turner. While the story starts off innocuously enough it isn’t long before the tension starts creeping in. There may not be any real violence or obvious danger in the first part of the book, but the darkness is palatable underneath the apparently smooth story. And so the reader finds themselves caught in a trap. There is a constant need to know what is happening, why it is happening and who the person orchestrating everything might actually be.

This is a well written thriller. Matthew Klein knows how to pull his audience in and keep them hooked. I don’t usually enjoy books in which none of the characters are truly sympathetic but that fact didn’t bother me in this book. In fact, Jimmy Thane is the sort of character that keeps the reader wondering; is he bad, weak, stupid, a little bit of all of those? Or is he actually very clever and just a victim of his own circumstances? Every time you think you have got it figured out the events in the story will change your perception until the very moment that everything is revealed and you stare at the page in complete and utter shock. The story and the way it all unfolds in the end may have stretched my imagination a little bit too far, but the way in which it was plotted and told made up for most if not all of that.

This is a thriller that will draw you in and keep you hooked until all the secrets have been revealed, leaving you both amazed and shocked. In short, this is a captivating read.

TEMPTATION

TITLE: TEMPTATION

AUTHOR: SELENA KITT

Pages: 160

Date: 01/04/2013

Grade: 4.5

Details: No. 1 Under Mr. Nolan’s Bed

             Received from the author

Own / Kindle

The blurb:

"Lead us not into temptation..." ~Matthew 6:13

What happens when you fall in love with your best friend's father?

Leah is a good, Catholic girl, and she and Erica have been best friends since their first communion. Sure, Erica's father is handsome and charming, but Leah spends so much time at the Nolan's--just Erica and her famous, photographer father now, since Erica's mother died--that she's practically part of the family.

Both girls have led privileged, sheltered lives and are on the "good girl" track at St. Mary Magdalene's Preparatory College, Leah pursuing her love of dance and Erica sating her endless curiosity as editor of the newspaper. Neither of them could have ever imagined that one fateful discovery will not only push the boundaries of their strict, repressive upbringing, but the bonds of their friendship as well.

Leah certainly never could have imagined finding herself torn between her best friend and her best friend's father. Sure, Leah's mother had always talked about Mr. Nolan as "a catch," but Leah herself had never thought of him as anything other than just Erica's dad--until the girls discover something darkly erotic under Mr. Nolan's bed, a deep, shameful secret that will not only lead them into temptation, but will deliver them into a far greater revelation than any of them could ever have imagined.”

Set in the 1950’s this is a wonderful and imaginative story of sexual awakening and forbidden love. And, as awakenings go, this is a rather abrupt one. It takes young Leah little or no time to change from an inexperienced innocent into a wanton sex vixen. What starts of as guiltily exploring unknown pleasures soon turns into actively pursuing and creating every opportunity to be intimate with the man she has fallen in love and in lust with.

The sexual tension spills off the page. The writing is so good that you can feel the excitement yourself while reading. It is almost as if, with Leah, you are discovering your own sexuality all over again. I can’t speak for anybody else, but it brought some delightful memories back to me. In fact, I think I enjoyed those early scenes, when the whole sexual experience is still completely new to Leah more than the later ones.

This is definitely an erotic story rather than a romance with erotic overtones. The scenes are well written, descriptive and very easy to visualise. In fact, the whole book is well written. The story is told from Leah’s point of view and it is especially easy to get a good picture of her character. The one thing I did question in this story is the confidence with which Leah interprets Mr. Nolan’s thoughts and feelings. It just doesn’t seem realistic that she would have such a well developed intuition or insight into his emotions. Not only do I not quite believe an inexperienced 18 year old would be so insightful, I have a hard time believing anybody could.

I actually went so far as to google the average age people start college at, and that turns out to be 17 or 18. The fact that these girls seem younger than that is due to the story being set in 1953 when young people were supposed to stay innocent longer – I would love to say when the world was a more innocent place but I don’t think that would be true -. The fact that the two girls in this story are as young as they are and that Leah falls for and gets intimate with her friend’s father may be a step too far for some readers. Just as I’m sure that some people will take offence at some descriptions relating to the Catholic Church and the two priests in the book. I didn’t feel offended or embarrassed at anything described in this book, but I have been told that I’m a bit more liberal than a lot of people around me.

This book is a re-written version of both “Under Mr. Nolan’s Bed” and “Plaid Skirt Confessions”. Since I’ve read neither of those two earlier stories I can’t say how they compare to this one. What I can say is that I enjoyed this book so much that I’m delighted that I already have a copy of the sequel on my Kindle. I’m not entirely sure where this story may be going next but I do know that I’m going to enjoy finding out.

THE CAPPUCCINO KISS

TITLE: THE CAPPUCCINO KISS

AUTHOR: FIONA McCLEAN

Pages: 232

Date: 31/03/2013

Grade: 4+

Details: Received from Roman 

            Books through Nudge

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Juliet’s life in England is collapsing around her ears. Sexually harassed at work and with her long term relationship with James being well past its best before date, her fear of dust and cleaning obsession are getting worse. In need of a break and encouraged by a friend she goes on a two week holiday to France where she meets Antoine. From the moment she meets him there is an attraction between Juliet and Antoine. But he is a man who works with horses, an environment that brings out Juliet’s deepest fears about dust and having to be in contact with it. And although Juliet and Antoine are getting closer there is another woman in his life. Veronique is older than Antoine and according to him they “only” have a discussion relationship, Juliet can’t decipher exactly what it is that binds the two of them together.

When Juliet goes back to England she knows she will have to leave James, who turns out to almost welcome that idea. After a few weeks of living on her own, Juliet decides to return to France and Antoine. Unable to stop thinking about him she would rather be with the man she has fallen in love with, despite any uncertainties about his intentions and his attachment to Veronique, than stay on her own in England.

But life in France isn’t easy. Antoine and Juliet move into the tiny cabin he owns together with Veronique. And although Veronique moves out she is never far away from Juliet’s life; phone calls, unexpected visits to the cabin and long and unexplained absences from Antoine fuel Juliet’s insecurities. At the same time, continued exposure to Antoine’s horses exposes her to a new passion. As time moves on and the situation, despite appearances, remains more or less unchanged it is Juliet’s quest to permanently bind Antoine to her that will lead her to new found independence and confidence.

This book is beautiful. I don’t just mean the writing and the story, but also the physical book. It has an attractive cover and a beautiful lay-out on the inside.

The language in this book is sparse. The story is told not in long narratives but more in short sketches. Not a lot of detail is revealed; descriptions are short and to the point, yet clear, and feelings are noted rather than delved into. Yet, while the story appears at first glance to just skim the surface, there is a lot of depth to it once you let the words sink in. There is as much significance in what is not said as in what is mentioned. Juliet’s moods can be judged by the amount of cleaning she needs to do, her progress by her ever increasing confidence with, and love of the horses. Because the story is only told by Juliet, and because she seems to only reluctantly share information, it is up to the reader to draw their own conclusions about the characters in this book. There are hints about what it is that binds Antoine to Veronique but no full explanation; we are given glimpses of Juliet’s thoughts and feelings but they are never spelled out for us; Veronique remains an enigma all through the story.

Because the book was written as if from a distance, as if the narrator wasn’t personally involved in what is happening - even though the story is told by Juliet - I never got really invested into what was happening to her. This lack of interest was increased by the fact that as far as I could see, Juliet was setting herself up for failure; in her job, with John and with Antoine she seemed to put herself in situations where a good ending just wasn’t on the cards.

This is a book that demands work from the reader. They will have to think about what they are reading and try to draw their own conclusions when it comes to the motivation behind the characters’ actions or lack thereof. At times I found this frustrating; found myself wanting and needing more information. On the whole however I enjoyed not having everything spelled out for me.

I liked the story, and found it an easy read. However, the book was also easy to put down because I never got caught up in the story enough. Having said that, there were times when the descriptions in this book took my breath away, like the moment when the title’s meaning is explained:

“This kiss is smooth; a cappuccino kiss”

At times almost poetic, this is a sensitive and thought provoking book that asks the reader to read beyond the words.

THE FETISH BOX: WHAT REMAINS

TITLE: THE FETISH BOX Part 3:  

          WHAT REMAINS

Author: Nicole Camden

Pages: 125 (approx)

Date: 30/03/2013

Grade: 4-

Details: No. 3 The Fetish Box

            Received from Gallery, Threshold, 

            Pocket Books through NetGalley

Own/Kindle

The Blurb:

In an attempt to seek out the source of the violence against her friends, Mary takes on a role she’d never imagined she’d play—a role that requires Mary to embrace the darkest parts of her soul. 

For the first time in her life, Mary understands who she is and where she belongs. What remains when you take away the sex and fun and adventure…is love. Love for her new friends, love for her lover, and love for the mother she never knew. She’s willing to risk anything—do anything—to keep them safe… 

And so we arrive at the final episode of Mary’s introduction to and continuation of her mother’s kinky life. Again, since this book is not so much a third title in a trilogy but rather the third part of the same novel, we start exactly where the second story, “What Escapes”; ended with Max and Mary waiting for the police to arrive after people have broken into her house, forcing Mary to flee. 

After this second attack, Mary is more determined than ever to attend the fetish party her shop is preparing for. She may be inexperienced when it comes to kink, but she is determined not to expose her new found friends to danger that is aimed at her personally. If anybody is going to put themselves at risk it should be her, and nobody else. And although her friends, and especially John who is starting to care for her more than he’s willing to admit, worry about her safety they can’t argue with the fact that it makes good business sense for her to introduce her mother’s customers to the new owner of The Fetish Box.

Deciding what clothes to wear to the party gives John and Mary plenty and highly imaginative opportunities to explore new sexual games. And although the party does turn out to be as dangerous as everybody feared, all’s well that ends well, especially since it allows Mary to discover exactly what she wants to do with her new life.

It is going to be impossible to share my thoughts on this book without repeating things I already said in my reviews for “Open All Night” and “What Escapes”. Since this is in reality one story rather than a trilogy I’m not sure that it is possible to review this book as a single entity. In fact, if anyone were to read this book without having read the first two installments first, they would probably be completely lost as to what exactly is happening and why.  So, my objections to Mike’s Irish accent and to the speed with which Mary turns from a virgin into a sexy vixen still stand. At one point in this book our heroine is actually described as being “experienced” which is a bit of a stretch taking into account that it has been a mere few weeks since she was first introduced to the pleasures of sex. 

As far as this book specifically is concerned I have two remarks to make. I found the resolution of the suspense part of the story a bit rushed. After all the build-up in the previous two installments it only took a few pages for the bad guy to come out of hiding, stage his attack and be caught. I also think I would have preferred it if there had been a twist with regard to the identity of Mary’s opponent.

But, having said all that, I have to admit that I did enjoy the story as a whole. I liked the idea behind it, I liked the characters and enjoyed the interactions (both physical and verbal) between them. In fact, I think my rating would have been a bit higher if I had read this as one book, without interruptions rather than the way I was forced to read it now. I’ve got a feeling that there may well be a sequel to this story coming and if that is true I hope Nicole Camden will consider publishing it as one book rather than a serial. I do find myself curious as to how this story and these characters will develop further but I’m not sure I want to put myself through reading-interruptus once again.