Master Class (Master Class, #1) in Riptide Publishing

Sep 07, 2011 BookAddict ✒ La Crimson Femme rated it really liked it

Shelves: edgeplay, bdsm, m-m, purchased, short-story, challenge-mm-gang-bang

Naughty Nicky is taking to task by the Dominant Devon. I just love alliteration, don't you? I'm glad I bought this book. There is some rough sex in here. I was a little confused and pissed off at first because I didn't understand what Devon was doing. Once it was revealed, I loved him more for it. Nicky needs to be punished! Topping from the bottom is a big no-no. I'm hesitant to write too much more about the story because it would be all spoiler. Suffice to say, the rough m/m sex was hot. This ...more

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May 08, 2014 Debra ~~ seriously slacking on her reviews ~~ rated it liked it

Shelves: other-kinks, talk-dirty-to-me, artists-dancers-actors-writers, short-or-novella, m-m, part-of-series-or-serial, bdsm

3.5 stars

I picked up this short after finding out it was about Nicky and Devon, who I previously read about as secondary characters in the Power Play: Resistance books. This appears to start at their first meeting during a dinner with friends at a restaurant, where the two have a rough encounter in the bathroom. I was a bit confused as to whether these two had known each other before in passing or if they had been just introduced, but it was obviously their first one-on-one encounter.

Devon purs ...more

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Dec 24, 2011 Cecile rated it it was amazing

For those of you that know me... and those that don't this is my little statement about short books.... I do not judge short stories on the rush of their relationships, because they are just that - short stories. So, yes the relationships always could have been drawn out more, yea it seems like they fall in love to fast and of course the story could have been made longer... but it is a short story. So with that said.... here is my review... I was given this book for my honest thoughts... So let' For those of you that know me... and those that don't this is my little statement about short books.... I do not judge short stories on the rush of their relationships, because they are just that - short stories. So, yes the relationships always could have been drawn out more, yea it seems like they fall in love to fast and of course the story could have been made longer... but it is a short story. So with that said.... here is my review... I was given this book for my honest thoughts... So let's go..

Ms. Rachel is a new to me author. However I will say this, her style is very intriguing. Now... Just in case the cover does not give this away... This is a m/m novel... So, if this is not your cup of flavor... You will not offend me, but just drop by to say Hi! If so... then let's go on!

Now, I will have to say though that this is a rather tad bit harsh bdsm m/m book. So, if being tested to your limits and being put out of your comfort zone... does not interest you... Again, just peek in to say hi, lol. But if I have piqued your interest, you really might want to think about reading this story.

I did find Devon to be a little rough/harsh on Nicky sometimes. But once I got in the story and found out his reasoning, it made sense. Devon knew or was praying he knew what Nicky needed all along. Hard love, stern punishment, and ownership can go a long way. And Devon was hoping that was exactly what Nicky would want... Especially from him!

Being a spoiled brat is not all what its cracked up to be. Especially if you dream of someday finding someone to control... You. Nicky was use to calling all the shots, all the time. In work and in the bedroom. Even though he thought himself to be a sub, he tries to act like a Dom. And the men he had in the past would allow him to do just that... play, act, pretend to be the Dom while acting like the sub. Nicky did not realize what he stirred inside Devon until it was almost to late.... And then his whole world will change but is he ready for that!

I enjoyed the story. I understood the harshness of Devon but I also understood Nicky and his emotions. The roughness is right for this story. Devon is a true Dom - with a capital D! And he is falling for a sub who needs a little more the just the average TLC. Can their relationship work after the acting is done.... ...more

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Sep 07, 2011 Alex rated it it was amazing

Shelves: queer, romance, bdsm

Overall
Everything I read with Nicky and Devon makes me want more! Although Nicky plays harder than I'm often comfortable with (even in my fiction), Haimowitz' approach, especially once the reader gets through the initial rough scenes, makes the bond between Devon and Nicky overwhelm any discomfort I have with the beginning.

The first two scenes involve some heavy play, although readers who are familiar with SUBlime will know what they are getting into. For those who haven't read the previous book Overall
Everything I read with Nicky and Devon makes me want more! Although Nicky plays harder than I'm often comfortable with (even in my fiction), Haimowitz' approach, especially once the reader gets through the initial rough scenes, makes the bond between Devon and Nicky overwhelm any discomfort I have with the beginning.

The first two scenes involve some heavy play, although readers who are familiar with SUBlime will know what they are getting into. For those who haven't read the previous book, I recommend reading Master Class first as it does a better job of showing the beginnings of their relationship, even though it still leaves me wanting more, more, more! Which is good, because then you can enter SUBlime with an appreciation of their standing.

Strengths
With material as sensitive and potentially difficult to handle, the writing becomes a crucial piece of the storytelling (not that it isn't important otherwise) and Haimowitz did an excellent job of exploring Nicky, who needs to feel a strong hand who won't be manipulated, and Devon, who enjoys controlling Nicky, but also who wants to help him. The scenes were handled extraordinarily well, balancing the sexual, the psychological, and the emotional so that by the end the reader is feeling what the characters have gone through. Sensual and breathtaking in some of its rawness.

There is so much potential for stories like this, that toe the line between purely erotic BDSM and story, to suffer for lack of character development. While I do want more of them and want more exploration into their relationship, I felt the amount the reader delves into Nicky and Devon's head, especially Devon's, helps get a grasp on what is happening with the story and the full depth and meaning of what is taking place. It's not just torture or sexual gratification, in fact, it's very little of either as Devon peels back Nicky's layers and reveals the true man inside.

Weaknesses
First a weakness that isn't a weakness: I want more. The ending is satisfying and gives closure, but I still want more, like a spoiled child! The nice thing is I can go back and re-read SUBlime for more Nicky and Devon adventures.

The only real weakness of this novel is that is is NOT for everyone. There is some what is described as "rape fantasy" (although it's not nearly as cruel or rape-ish as other books that have had similar warnings). I wouldn't consider it a rape fantasy, but I think the warning is good, as the first scenes involve force and humiliation and could trigger. Humiliation is a squick for me, but it's not bad enough to really push the off button for me (just to give an idea of it's level of disturbance).

Be sure to check out my other reviews on my blog. ...more

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Nov 23, 2011 Evaine rated it really liked it

Shelves: m-m, bdsm

Now this, my children, is BDSM, unlike that shady shit. The author certainly knows her stuff. My personal taste would have been to have more insight into the characters of Nicky and Devon outside of their Dom and sub roles, but what the author has done actually works for me in the context of the hard-to-please Dom finding his perfectly-matched sub. I found myself reading the book not as a novel, but as a series of short stories, scenes if you will, working their way up to the moments that Nicky ...more

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Oct 01, 2011 Dee Wy rated it really liked it

Shelves: bdsm, m-m, m-m-contemporary

Take one Dom who knows exactly what his sub needs and one sub who tries to top from the bottom and you have an explosive mix. I simply loved the psychology behind the BDSM in this one. Great read!

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