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Feb 09, 2011

comfort rated it:

After reading this I have discovered I do not like a Dominant male referring to his Submissive female as a slut or whore etc.

This is a BDSM story with minimal BDSM. He controls her without all the paraphernalia usually seen in these types of stories. He does control her well- up to a point.

You can feel her pain when her body and legs ache from her dancing and her punishments.

He betrays her terribly and I did have issues with this act.I am not sure if I would More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

May 08, 2011

♆ Bookaddict rated it:

Matthew is emotionally crippled, that is my psychoanalysis of the bastard. Lucy is a messed up little girl who is a masochist. This intense BDSM story from Ms. Joseph created fits of fury, frustration and rage for me. Matthew is not what I consider a healthy dom. To put it simply, he's one f-ed up mo-fo who perversions leads Lucy down a subversive and destructive path.

I couldn't relate to Lucy at all. I wanted to shake her several times and then slap some sense into her. Matthew' More...

2 comments like (6 people liked it)

Dec 24, 2011

I ♥ Bookie Nookie rated it:

MERCY is one of those fantastic, but slightly twisted reads that leaves you feeling excited and a little confused about why you enjoyed it so much.

Millionaire Matthew and dancer Lucy begin their relationship as master and slave in a very business like fashion. Matthew explains what her role as his submissive would be like with such clinical detachment that it truly boggled my mind and it was obviously just as confusing to Lucy...but it was also very exciting. Watching their relations More...

4 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 11, 2011

Michelle, the Bookshelf Stalker rated it:

2.5 stars out of 5
Very strange. I thought I would really like Annabel Joseph's books. I love authors that are similar to her in style especially Remittance Girl and Kitty Thomas.

I really tried to think of why I don't do well with Joseph's books, but I just don't. I put off this review so I could think about it but nothing is coming to me. I think I would enjoy her books if I had nothing to compare them to, but I do.

I'm not saying anything is wrong with the books, More...

3 comments like

Feb 16, 2012

Purplegirl549 rated it:

I have read several M/M BDSM books and was looking for a m/f book that would keep my interest just the same. Joseph's books have done that. This is the 5th book that I have read,from Annabel Joseph, over the last few months and it is the 5th one that I have enjoyed. Every one of her books has sucked me in to the point that I can barely put it down. I am at the point that I can just buy her books without contemplating. I enjoy her character development and the fact that her books make me feel More...

0 comments like

Dec 12, 2011

Renee rated it:

Wow - I just finished this book. I am normally pretty open to BDSM, D/s, controlling relationships, etc.. I've read a bunch of other books that fall into this category and have enjoyed them. I can honestly say, though, that I did not enjoy this book.

It opens with Lucy basically saying that she is emotionally bankrupt (as in - no capacity to scream out her rage & anger and no ability to cry when she needs to). She meets this guy who makes her uncomfortable on a base level but decides t More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 27, 2011

Brittany rated it:

Warning. Spoilers below.

25 pages left and there's no chance I'm finishing this book. When the other characters started encouraging Matthew's abusive behavior, I was fucking done with Mercy. Where in America would a doctor encourage a patient to return to her boyfriend after he nearly <spoiler>crippled </spoiler> her with rough sex? Where in America would a so-called friend encourage your boyfriend to <spoiler>rape you</spoiler> and then tell More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 29, 2011

Barbara rated it:

Comments more than review.

*Lucy had to be dehydrated from all the crying she did. She cried constantly for every single reason and for no reason. All. The. Time.

*Matthew didn't just administer punishment to her, at times, it seemed like he beat the shit out of her. Whether she liked it or not, he didn't seem to take much care with her. She was a dancer and it seemed extremely unlikely that she'd have been remotely functional with the types of beatings he was adminis More...

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Apr 21, 2011

Jane rated it:

I am not sure what to rate this book so I went for three stars. This is well written but there are parts of the story that were pretty horrifying. The main problem in this story is that both characters are unhappy with themselves and their unhappiness causes them to engage in a very dysfunctional relationship that based on extreme domination and submission.

It's not one of those books were the dom takes care of the sub but where the dom leads the sub in to deeper arenas of pain, and More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Mar 10, 2011

Alma (aka Mrs. Rhaw) rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 08, 2011

Jae rated it:

Jae’s Dark Divas Review of this title:

If you’ve been following my reviews at all, you’ll have noticed the numerous reviews for Annabel Joseph’s stories because I have just fallen in love each and every one. Mercy is a self-published work of Ms. Joseph’s but deserves no less accolades than any of her more recently published work. Many times early works don’t live up to an author’s latest efforts, and I truly can see the amazing growth in her writing skills and storytelling, but Mercy is More...

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Feb 21, 2012

Purplebook rated it:

I thought this book would be something similar to the Fifty Shades Series and

I liked the cover, so I decided to try it, but it was nothing like it.

It was just to raw, brutal, vulgar and primal; it was just a "bit" too much for me-

I guess not my cup of tea.

****INSIGNIFICANT SPOILERS ALERT, BUT STILL SPOILERS:)****

I didn't like the female protagonist; she was too naive, immature and weak- she kept on crying and crying and More...

5 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 19, 2011

Rose May rated it:

Note: This review, and all my reviews, comes from my blog - Romantic Rose's Bookshelf (http://romantic-rosesblog.blogspot.com)

So this week I decided to review a book that could get me in trouble with feminists and non-kinky romance lovers. Mercy, by Annabel Joseph, is really one of the kinkiest BDSM books out there. Behold, the following list of the kinkiness of Mercy:

Kinks: explicit scenes of dominance and submission, discipline & training, bondage, group sex, oral sex, More...

0 comments like

Dec 10, 2011

Verity rated it:

Verra mechanical, un-erotic scenes. So not sexy when told - not shown - thru 1st POV, long ass narrative. The author's voice just didn't work on so many levels. I was looking for a hardcore, spankalicious story but it turned out to be limp Bizkit. Ballerina got raped by stalkerific fan 3 years ago, but craves pain & degradation as therapy. Mutual insta luv between hypocritical H/h. Honorable mention : HEA is achieved after hero intentionally drops his potent li'l swimmers in heroine's canal 4 X More...

9 comments like (7 people liked it)

Jun 03, 2010

TWIGGY17 rated it:

*Possible Spoilers* No specific details in review

I liked this book, but it took me a long time to like Matthew the Dom. He was just very cold and distant to me and I think that was how we, the readers and Lucy(the sub) were supposed to feel about him. So whenever he was even slightly affection or warm to Lucy we definately felt grateful. I am not sure how I felt about that. She had to completely trust Matthew not to hurt her, but their relationship was very business More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 21, 2011

Adriana rated it:

too much crying for my tastes but there are definitely other things to compensate that! :) my first BDSM book, a treat...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 05, 2012

Amanda rated it:

This was the first time I've read anything by Annabel Joseph. It was recommended to me by a fellow Rauncher who had just begun to explore BDSM books. I picked up Mercy for a few reason: a) it was recommended b) the heroine was a dancer and I have a personal connection with dance and c) I was looking for something to follow up Fifty Shades of Grey in terms of a contractual BDSM relationship.

I had a hell of a time wrapping my head around this book. I was enjoying the ride for probab More...

0 comments like

Dec 11, 2011

Stumble rated it:

I really enjoyed this book. We are taken on a journey of loss and love and the lies we tell ourselves to keep existing in our fancied realities.
To me it is not so much a book about bdsm but more about letting yourself fall and own the truth.

This is a story of two people lost who promise to always have truth between them. That however is a moot point when lying to oneself.
Matthew and Lucy are in for a world of pain and beauty, and I sincerely hope you join them.

Ho More...

0 comments like

Jan 04, 2012

Carol rated it:

Lucy a ballet dancer finds Matthew notices her dancing talents and they develop a Dom/sub relationship. Lucy is taken on her journey of training & discipline and some serious scenes scenes of dominance and submission Matthew also takes her into a brief menage experience. Gradually but reluctantly Matthew grows to love his sub and despite her rebellion it has a good outcome for romanticists amongst you. It also explores that time that all dancers dread...what happens if there is injury and a car More...

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Feb 06, 2011

Wookiesgirl rated it:

I enjoyed this story.. It has some major BDSM play in it.. Some of it a bit over the top, but it showed another side of that world. There are many sides of it and some authors do a wonderful job of portraying it on the pages.

Lucy and Matthew are quite complex. The love affair is a desperate roller coaster of confusing emotions. A relationship forged by truth but in all actuality is full of lies. The two of them work to overcome the pain of that realization. Of course in the end there i More...

0 comments like

Feb 22, 2011

Alisa rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Nov 05, 2010

Adrienne rated it:

Oh wow I loved this, so unlike anything I've read before. I downloaded this on the back of the excerpt that appeared Comfort Food I liked the premise, dancer Lucy is taken the wing of her Ballet companies Patron Matthew. What follows is an journey in emotional BDSM. Based on previous experience Matthew wants a playmate and he thinks Lucy could be the one. Lucy agrees knowing hat the arrangement can be nothing more than that. However as their playing develops so do other feelings, and in an at More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 09, 2011

Fallon rated it:

I'm very sorry that it took me so long to read Mercy and I'm not even sure why I hesitated. I absolutely love Ms. Joseph's writing. Her voice in Mercy, and her other self published work, has an almost literary feel to it. Words flow seamlessly, allowing the reader to experience the story effortlessly.

And I think it would be correct to say that Mercy is an experience. Despite the lack of BDSM props, this is not a light tale of dominance and submission. It's a detailed account of a de More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 19, 2011

Bianca rated it:

This book wasn't for me. The heroine, Lucy, was a depressing character. She seemed so lonely and sad. The hero seemed to almost hate Lucy at times. He was almost borderline abusive to her. <spoiler> Not to mention the fact that he had sex with her while she was passed out to purposely impregnate her against her wishes, I mean that is just plain creepy and not sexy </spoiler> I know this is a Dom/Sub relationship, but he still seemed excessively cruel and cold to her. This just wasn't More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Nov 29, 2011

Carina rated it:

How did I end up reading this book?
Well when I read ,Comfort Food, the ebook had a preview of this book in the back. I started reading and I found it really interesting, so I bought/downladed it. What a surprise was it to find that this was a BDSM book.
I am not really into BDSM, but this book was really well written. I was caught in reading what would happen next, and how all those issues were going to be resolved and what would happen between the protagonists. Not to mention all th More...

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Nov 23, 2011

Nar - rated it:

i think this is one of the books i would pick up if i could not find any other book to read, i mean the book was ok but there were times in this book where i actually wanted to slap Lucy i mean she just keeps crying LOOL!!! its a book i know but damn! not over the moon entertaining but mildly entertaining especially if you haven't read a book with the genre of bdsm in it, i think this book would be a really good for people to start reading the genre of bdsm ::)

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Dec 20, 2010

Sophie rated it:

This is great work of BDSM fiction. One of the things I loved about it was the fact that it made me squirm at some points. This is not a light and fluffy work. I read it one sitting, and found the characters fascinating. I can't say I loved the hero of this book, but that's one of the things I liked about it. There was nothing cookie cutter about it. It was a dark, sometimes uncomfortable, ultimately illuminating experience - much like the subject matter.

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Jan 11, 2012

Joss rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Feb 04, 2012

♦Elomari rated it:

I am not a fan at all of beating, but this book for whatever reason, fascinated me. I would have liked it better if there was no strong BDSM. The book hooked me like a fish once I started it, and it took such a different turn towards the end. Lucy was a little hard to understand at the beginning for me, but later on, her feelings are explained. Reminded me a lot of Comfort Foods, although I like the outcome of this book better.

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Jul 20, 2011

Sophia rated it:

I'm so torn on this. I couldn't put it down. The portrayal of the BDSM lifestyle is both compelling and disturbing. The power exchange that Lucy and Matthew negotiate was fascinating, but it also felt like a train wreck at times. There are plenty of exquisite sex and punishment scenes to satisfy your kink. Some were a bit cringe-worthy, but I still kept reading.

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