What do you think?
Rate this book
Mirror Secret Mirror
Be careful what you fantasise. Your dreams may just come true…
What is real? What is imaginary? This is the line Jessica Seaques walks, ever since she won a commission to write erotica for the indulgence of an anonymous patron. Many of her stories are based around the strange working environment the patron provides – a bizarre, mirror-walled office where Jess liaises with his beautiful yet cruel ‘agent’ and the awkward, long-suffering receptionist. All the while, the mirrors watch as the writer gets drawn… deeper and deeper… into this eccentric world of erotic fantasy.
What is real? What is imaginary? What’s the difference? Who’s the man behind the mirror and the mystery? Through the looking glass, Jess will go… and nobody knows if she’ll make it out.
MIRROR SECRET MIRROR is dark, decadent, BDSM erotica. This book is a corrupting force, an evil seduction, a delicious poison… a trap! It’s the story of a young woman being lured, baited, manipulated… hunted, captured, enslaved. The villain is dark-eyed, devilish and dominant. The villainess is sleek, sadistic and sexy. The predators work together to ensnare their prey. This story is offensive, dishonest and depraved. It twists romance, perverts love and mocks morality.
Consider yourself warned!
What is real? What is imaginary? This is the line Jessica Seaques walks, ever since she won a commission to write erotica for the indulgence of an anonymous patron. Many of her stories are based around the strange working environment the patron provides – a bizarre, mirror-walled office where Jess liaises with his beautiful yet cruel ‘agent’ and the awkward, long-suffering receptionist. All the while, the mirrors watch as the writer gets drawn… deeper and deeper… into this eccentric world of erotic fantasy.
What is real? What is imaginary? What’s the difference? Who’s the man behind the mirror and the mystery? Through the looking glass, Jess will go… and nobody knows if she’ll make it out.
MIRROR SECRET MIRROR is dark, decadent, BDSM erotica. This book is a corrupting force, an evil seduction, a delicious poison… a trap! It’s the story of a young woman being lured, baited, manipulated… hunted, captured, enslaved. The villain is dark-eyed, devilish and dominant. The villainess is sleek, sadistic and sexy. The predators work together to ensnare their prey. This story is offensive, dishonest and depraved. It twists romance, perverts love and mocks morality.
Consider yourself warned!
368 pages, Paperback
Published May 31, 2023
12 people are currently reading
31 people want to read
About the author
Jessica Seaques
1 book11 followersHi!
I’m Jessica Seaques - pronounced ‘Seeks’ (call me Jess).
I love traveling, daydreaming, drinking tea and snuggling cats (especially Baggins!). I also enjoy: provoking a response; pretending to be innocent; and getting into trouble. I dislike: forgotten tea that’s gone cold; blushing in public; and not being punished when I clearly deserve it.
I’m in my early twenties, recently finished university and moved to London looking for adventure… of which I found plenty…
I’m Jessica Seaques - pronounced ‘Seeks’ (call me Jess).
I love traveling, daydreaming, drinking tea and snuggling cats (especially Baggins!). I also enjoy: provoking a response; pretending to be innocent; and getting into trouble. I dislike: forgotten tea that’s gone cold; blushing in public; and not being punished when I clearly deserve it.
I’m in my early twenties, recently finished university and moved to London looking for adventure… of which I found plenty…
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
May 27, 2023
Jess is hired on commission to write stories for a mysterious Patron, who’s never named, whom she interacts with via an intermediary, Katya. She moves into the offices of the ‘company’ she writes for – a space of mirrors, reflections upon reflections, bad furniture, a secretive receptionist (Charlotte), and insulting, sexy, dominant agent (Katya). The lines between what’s real and not are in a constant state if flux with Jess’s stories drawing on those around her and her own experiences mirroring her stories. Some of the chapters in the book are stories that Jess has written and some chapters are what’s going on in her life. The Patron and Katya are both dominant and have no problems wielding their power or any other instrument they see fit. When Jess finally figured out what the Patron and Katya had been doing and she gained control, instead of making them come to her, she made a TSTL move and lost what respect I had for her. The BDSM elements really went over into some really darker aspects for me, and most of chapter fourteen just felt like abuse. I had read the TWs on the website at https://mirrorsecretmirror.com/author/ but I think that extensive degradation and humiliation should be added, as that was rampant throughout the story. While the chapter on classic BDSM literature and BDSM ethics was somewhat interesting, it seems superfluous to the story itself and just made for a longer read. I applaud the creativity behind the Mirror Secret Mirror concept – the character being the ‘author’ of the book, the coordinating website and social media accounts (significant to the story).
June 24, 2023
This was an okay read that I thought was too long. Jess is hired on commission to write stories for a mysterious Patron who was never named and I thought that it was weird. I think the problem for me with this book was the back and forth. Some of the chapters in the book are stories that Jess has written and some chapters are what’s going on in her life. I liked the concept of this book I just felt that it was too long and to many things going on in it. I also didn't connect with any of the characters they weren't very likable. This was the author's first book. This book was well written with no errors in grammar or spelling. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.
July 8, 2023
Jessica Seaques' mirror reflects a hidden world where fantasy and reality merge into one. Experience the cat-and-mouse game of power and desire as her vivid descriptions break through the page to bring the reader along at every breathless twist and turn. What will her mirror reveal when it all ends?
Read
June 15, 2024DNF
I personally just don’t think this book is for me
I personally just don’t think this book is for me
Read
July 23, 2023rtc
June 1, 2023
WOW!! This is a holdyourbreathandhangontight sort of read! You are warned before you glimpse the first word that this is dark, this is different, this is several worlds you have probably never read about before, and certainly some you may not have experienced. But you are a hardened reader, experienced, worldly and always searching for the new, the different, the thrill of never wanting the story to end. So you read the book......and the world explodes in your head!
Mirror Secret Mirror is a firework of a read: it's a kaleidoscope of beautiful words that leaves sparks behind your eyelids and an unforgettable noise in your head! And I apologise now for the length of this review but MSM inspired me to speak and I must add here that this review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author.
So, this is a book of many layers: the inyourface explicit sex required of erotica and the heightened, sensual, poetic prose of an intellectual author quietly subverting the genre. It is a book of the expected and the unexpected, the two sides of the same coin, the repressed and the freed!
Though there are echoes of De Sade's writing here, the prose of MSM led me to ask myself if this book is a tribute to Anais Nin? And no, I'm not an expert on Nins work, I just followed some of the literary breadcrumbs scattered in the book. Nin, herself an erotica writer, writing to her own invisible collector, once queried his continuous requests to remove all poetry from any erotic writing claiming:
'Sex loses all its power and magic when it becomes explicit, mechanical, overdone, when it becomes a mechanistic obsession. It becomes a bore. You have taught us more than anyone I know how wrong it is not to mix it with emotion, hunger, desire, lust, whims, caprices, personal ties, deeper relationships that change its color, flavor, rhythms, intensities. ‘You do not know what you are missing by your microscopic examination of sexual activity to the exclusion of aspects which are the fuel that ignites it. Intellectual, imaginative, romantic, emotional. This is what gives sex its surprising textures, its subtle transformations, its aphrodisiac elements. You are shrinking your world of sensations. You are withering it, starving it, draining its blood.'
And doesn't that sum up most of this genre even now? Reading Seaques I get the feeling that she is trying hard to put the 'fuel' back into writing erotica, and, boy, does she succeed! In Mirror Secret Mirror she expertly demonstrates the two sides of erotica in this amazing onion of a book. On one level there's a deft weaving of erotic sensualism with the fantastical through Jessica's over active imagination while on another a definite pandering to genre expectations with Jessica's own erotic writing. However, you may find the blurring between the two worlds confusing and annoying and some parts definitely overdone. But go with it. I found it added to the intrigue.
Also, here Jessica's invisible story collector differs to Nins, he asks for her erotica to ' make the reader think and feel, touch and the taste'
He wants MSM "Haunting you… leaping into your imagination, at any time of day or night… and carrying you away. Into the depths of your own depravity." His greatest desire "MSM is to inspire , enrich and darken at least a million orgasms across the world"
Do I think that is possible? Well, that depends on what you want to take away from the book. It is, after all, erotica, and an interesting and extremely clever erotica at that, right down to the web page. There's definitely something for everyone here! So, yes, it could be possible.
However, as usual I'm looking at it with a writer's eye, always searching for the fresh, the original, the underlying messages hidden in the text And while Seaques' prose is some of the best I've ever read, MSM does insightfully explore themes like the boundaries between the vanilla and kink worlds, submission as the innate, repressed desire it is, and the trap the erotic novel perpetuates. It also tries very hard to sell itself as the erotic novel that will free this narrative, the one that normalises kink. After all, we are just the product of infinite reflections, carried through time on social constraints waiting for someone to shatter the mirror. So yes, for me, it's a very ambitious book to say the least!
As you can tell I loved this book. It's sharp, intuitive, playful, mysterious, original, experimental, bursting with some of the best metaphors and similes ever.....need I go on? Ultimately, for me, it's about reinventing the genre and freeing the narrative from the sordid. And yes, I think the collector will see his dream for this book come true.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Mirror Secret Mirror is a firework of a read: it's a kaleidoscope of beautiful words that leaves sparks behind your eyelids and an unforgettable noise in your head! And I apologise now for the length of this review but MSM inspired me to speak and I must add here that this review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author.
So, this is a book of many layers: the inyourface explicit sex required of erotica and the heightened, sensual, poetic prose of an intellectual author quietly subverting the genre. It is a book of the expected and the unexpected, the two sides of the same coin, the repressed and the freed!
Though there are echoes of De Sade's writing here, the prose of MSM led me to ask myself if this book is a tribute to Anais Nin? And no, I'm not an expert on Nins work, I just followed some of the literary breadcrumbs scattered in the book. Nin, herself an erotica writer, writing to her own invisible collector, once queried his continuous requests to remove all poetry from any erotic writing claiming:
'Sex loses all its power and magic when it becomes explicit, mechanical, overdone, when it becomes a mechanistic obsession. It becomes a bore. You have taught us more than anyone I know how wrong it is not to mix it with emotion, hunger, desire, lust, whims, caprices, personal ties, deeper relationships that change its color, flavor, rhythms, intensities. ‘You do not know what you are missing by your microscopic examination of sexual activity to the exclusion of aspects which are the fuel that ignites it. Intellectual, imaginative, romantic, emotional. This is what gives sex its surprising textures, its subtle transformations, its aphrodisiac elements. You are shrinking your world of sensations. You are withering it, starving it, draining its blood.'
And doesn't that sum up most of this genre even now? Reading Seaques I get the feeling that she is trying hard to put the 'fuel' back into writing erotica, and, boy, does she succeed! In Mirror Secret Mirror she expertly demonstrates the two sides of erotica in this amazing onion of a book. On one level there's a deft weaving of erotic sensualism with the fantastical through Jessica's over active imagination while on another a definite pandering to genre expectations with Jessica's own erotic writing. However, you may find the blurring between the two worlds confusing and annoying and some parts definitely overdone. But go with it. I found it added to the intrigue.
Also, here Jessica's invisible story collector differs to Nins, he asks for her erotica to ' make the reader think and feel, touch and the taste'
He wants MSM "Haunting you… leaping into your imagination, at any time of day or night… and carrying you away. Into the depths of your own depravity." His greatest desire "MSM is to inspire , enrich and darken at least a million orgasms across the world"
Do I think that is possible? Well, that depends on what you want to take away from the book. It is, after all, erotica, and an interesting and extremely clever erotica at that, right down to the web page. There's definitely something for everyone here! So, yes, it could be possible.
However, as usual I'm looking at it with a writer's eye, always searching for the fresh, the original, the underlying messages hidden in the text And while Seaques' prose is some of the best I've ever read, MSM does insightfully explore themes like the boundaries between the vanilla and kink worlds, submission as the innate, repressed desire it is, and the trap the erotic novel perpetuates. It also tries very hard to sell itself as the erotic novel that will free this narrative, the one that normalises kink. After all, we are just the product of infinite reflections, carried through time on social constraints waiting for someone to shatter the mirror. So yes, for me, it's a very ambitious book to say the least!
As you can tell I loved this book. It's sharp, intuitive, playful, mysterious, original, experimental, bursting with some of the best metaphors and similes ever.....need I go on? Ultimately, for me, it's about reinventing the genre and freeing the narrative from the sordid. And yes, I think the collector will see his dream for this book come true.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
June 24, 2023
I was given a copy of this book by the author and am pleased to share my experience while reading it. Mirror Secret Mirror almost defies any sense of true reality that I possess. That was part of what made this such an awesome read. I originally had a bit of confusion with the concept and style but by Chapter 2 I was pleasantly surprised and excited about the emotions and images the story line was creating for me. This was a book that I had difficulty putting down and at the same time felt at times like I was not getting it read. I find this book almost genre unclassified. I in all honesty am not sure how to review this wonderful debut novel without a spoiler of some type. I will say that I discovered some personal qualities or leanings I was unaware of prior to reading MSM. I find I like books best that challenge me in some way personally or inter personally. I seriously hope that Jessica Seaques writes more of this type of work. I love dark and my only insight is take heed of the bottom of the cover...'consider yourself warned'. If you like darker than commonly dark this is definitely a read to grab. If you are looking for a challenge to your personal limits in your adventurous life grab this quick take 2-3 days off from the world and dive deep. Enjoy I did.
December 18, 2023
WOW what a book!
A dark BDSM book that I didn't see coming but immensely enjoyed! Jessica states this is not a dark romance and head that warning because while this is dark and could be classed in the dark romance genre it's not a romance. This book had a completely unique story line that I haven't seen before, Jess starts a job for a mysterious and unseen boss who only communities between a third party and when you start reading the book you get plunged right into the action and by action I mean a dark and hazy world in which Jess is living.
Definitely on the 18+ side, Jessica does an amazing job of describing the atmosphere and the characters emotions so well that you can easily loose yourself in this book. I quite enjoy books that are out there and aren't what they seem and this one just did it for me, it had the right amount of darkness, mystery and plot that keeps you intrigued while you're reading, giving you tid bits of information as you are going that keeps you feeling like you've almost got the whole story but just need to keep going to get the full image.
A dark BDSM book that I didn't see coming but immensely enjoyed! Jessica states this is not a dark romance and head that warning because while this is dark and could be classed in the dark romance genre it's not a romance. This book had a completely unique story line that I haven't seen before, Jess starts a job for a mysterious and unseen boss who only communities between a third party and when you start reading the book you get plunged right into the action and by action I mean a dark and hazy world in which Jess is living.
Definitely on the 18+ side, Jessica does an amazing job of describing the atmosphere and the characters emotions so well that you can easily loose yourself in this book. I quite enjoy books that are out there and aren't what they seem and this one just did it for me, it had the right amount of darkness, mystery and plot that keeps you intrigued while you're reading, giving you tid bits of information as you are going that keeps you feeling like you've almost got the whole story but just need to keep going to get the full image.
August 19, 2023
I am so grateful for receiving a free copy of this authors debut book for my honest review.
This one is a tough one. i didn't hate it, but i didn't love it.
I was close to dnf'ing a few times as i just found it wasn't my style of writing with long chapters and i found it alittle hard to connect with and complicated to read but with that said It was a really good read looking back and sorting though the information and connecting the dots.
The story was deep, really fascinating and interesting following an authors life, her stories which she writes, and her imagination. It's full of twists and turns, full of mystery and definitely one to keep you on your toes.
It's definitely worth reading. You may end up loving it because i am so happy i pushed through and finished.
Please remember that this is dark with BDSM themes and many triggers.
This one is a tough one. i didn't hate it, but i didn't love it.
I was close to dnf'ing a few times as i just found it wasn't my style of writing with long chapters and i found it alittle hard to connect with and complicated to read but with that said It was a really good read looking back and sorting though the information and connecting the dots.
The story was deep, really fascinating and interesting following an authors life, her stories which she writes, and her imagination. It's full of twists and turns, full of mystery and definitely one to keep you on your toes.
It's definitely worth reading. You may end up loving it because i am so happy i pushed through and finished.
Please remember that this is dark with BDSM themes and many triggers.
June 6, 2023
This book was... a lot. I'm honestly not sure how I felt about. The story was interesting, though the book felt entirely too long. I wanted to find out what happened, but almost dnf'd halfway through just because I felt like I'd never finish.
Its a dark story for sure, not a romance in any way I'd describe. The characters weren’t very likeable and it was sometimes hard to tell what was actually happening vs the writer's story vs her fantasies. But overall still a worthwhile read for anyone into the darker side of erotica. Just make sure to check out trigger warnings and kinks covered...there are plenty.
Its a dark story for sure, not a romance in any way I'd describe. The characters weren’t very likeable and it was sometimes hard to tell what was actually happening vs the writer's story vs her fantasies. But overall still a worthwhile read for anyone into the darker side of erotica. Just make sure to check out trigger warnings and kinks covered...there are plenty.
Read
December 27, 2023I have wrestled with this book review. The author contacted me for a review. The book premise sounded intriguing. When I first started it, it came across a bit clunky, almost like a Literotica fiction piece. It quickly becomes apparently that the story is an aspiring author writing a fictional piece for a writing contest. Now I'm very intrigued.
* I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
To read the rest of my review, click on the image below to see it on my website
* I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
To read the rest of my review, click on the image below to see it on my website
June 14, 2023
A LOT going on in this book that the reader needs to pay attention to. A steamy and erotic story that has some twists and turns to keep you engaged. There are four main characters in the book and one you will surely hate, but it adds to the story line. I did not give this book five stars, as I felt it went off the rails at times, making it somewhat confusing.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
July 23, 2023
I received a free copy of this book on Story Origin in exchange for an honest review. I didn't hate this book, but I didn't love it. The book was too long!!!! It was 300 - 400 pages! I don't read books that pass the 250-page mark
UNLESS
I think they're good! I didn't understand why the patron she writes for goes unnamed... I would recommend this book to people who enjoy reading anything.
May 29, 2023
This is my first Jessica Seaques novel, and I wasn't disappointed. Deliciously dark and dangerous, not for the fainthearted. Great characters, and a well written storyline. Would recommend. Will read more from this author!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
May 31, 2023
This story was a little hard for me to connect with. Some scenes were intense and uncomfortable. The characters were a bit psychotic and quite unlikeable. In the end, I wasn't sure if I enjoyed what I read or if it was a bit too complicated and dark for me. But you may end up loving it if you give it a try.
May 28, 2023
This is one sick book and author. Whoever wrote this is one "sick puppy". This is not a sexy book. There is no intimate moments. It is very dark and one chapter is sheer humiliation and violence. I have no triggers but I cannot really say whether I like this extremely long book or not.
September 17, 2023
Realty or fantasy
What a mind game... was she really living and writing about the experience, or is she living in her imagination? The storytelling kept my interest all the way through. I look forward to future stories by Jessica Seaques.
What a mind game... was she really living and writing about the experience, or is she living in her imagination? The storytelling kept my interest all the way through. I look forward to future stories by Jessica Seaques.
May 28, 2023
I do have to say this is a very good read at least for me and this is my opinion. I thought the character built up was fantastic and the storyline kept me reading until the end.
May 31, 2023
YES!! Totally awesome read. Highly addictive storyline. Full of twists. Couldn't put it down. Lots of banter. Read this now.
September 26, 2023
This is one of those books where you finish and are like wtf did I read? Im not sure If I liked it or not cause I am still trying to figure it out. What was actually real and what was fake? This is usually not my type of book and I'm not sure how I feel about it.
Spice: 3
Spice: 3
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews