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Friday, March 29, 2013

The Secret Life of a Submissive: A True Story by Sarah K

about book:

the TRUTH really is HOTTER than FICTION

Sarah K is a writer and a level-headed single mother.  But when she meets Max - a charming, handsome and deliciously brooding - she senses things are about to change.  Max is a Dominant.  And he wants Sarah to surrender to him in every way.

In this explosive true story, Sarah takes us on her erotically charged journey to becoming a submissive.  Before long she can't stop herself, yielding to Max's every desire, pushing her mind and body to their limits.  Pleasure and pain become her world - and she's addicted: to the adrenalin, to the sensation, to Max himself.

And now she's in serious danger of giving in to the ultimate temptation: falling in love...

Evocative, witty, thrilling and told with complete honesty, The Secret Life of a Submissive will enthrall you, amaze you and leave you begging for more.

my thoughts:

Let me just start by saying, "Wow!"  This book truly shocked and unnerved me.  I found myself horrified at some of the scenes described and couldn't help but feel angry, confused, and completely speechless at times.  I've read novels about BDSM before, but for some reason those books never bothered me.  Then again, those books were fiction, and so I found them to be more of a guilty pleasure type of read.  However, this time round, I was reading a nonfiction story about the author's own personal experience with a Dom/Sub relationship and it was definitely not what I had expected.

Sarah writes erotic fiction novels and has always wanted to do more than just research the subject matter for her books - she's wanted to experience it for quite some time.  When she was young, she married an older man and they had children.  They had a rather unfulfilled marriage and wound up divorcing.  Newly single, Sarah decides that its time to start dating, and so she joins a BDSM site to see if she can find someone to show her the ropes.  She meets up with quite few duds at first, but finally hits pay dirt with Max.  He's been a Dom for quite some time and is happy to enter into a BDSM relationship with Sarah.  He draws up the contract and they both agree on safe words.  And soon enough, Sarah is experiencing firsthand what it means to be punished for disobeying her Master.  We read about her nervousness, insecurity, shock, and awe about the new world she has decided to become a part of.  There is spanking, collars, caning, dog bowls and just so many things that will make your jaw drop.  It really was quite an eye-opening read.

In fact, I'm still digesting the story.  There was just so much to take in that I found to be rather unsettling.  Some of the scenes were just too violent and degrading that I couldn't help but wonder what the hell I was reading.  It just horrified me that beating someone equated to pleasure - how was that possible?  I know that a contract was signed and that Sarah agreed to these things, but I still got upset by what I read.  Don't get me wrong, the entire story was not filled with scenes of violence - there actually were some light bits in there (Sarah hanging out with her girlfriends, wandering around Paris with Max, questioning her feelings for Max, going on bad dates, etc.).  I enjoyed Sarah's humorous and candid tone - she made relating to her so easy (well, some of the time).  I suppose that in the end, I did enjoy getting to know Sarah and this journey she went on - it was definitely an unforgettable one.   Plus, the writing was great, the characters were fully realized ( I wonder why?), and the subject matter was extremely fascinating.  Oh, and I did get a happily ever after ending - Sarah wound up meeting someone and falling in love.  She's now happily married and occasionally dabbles in a bit of BDSM (with her husband).  Overall, her relationship with Max helped her open her heart to a new world, new experiences, and new people. 

I would recommend The Secret Life of a Submissive to fans of BDSM novels and anyone interested in nonfiction books (specifically ones about sexual relationships). 
Thank you to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

2 comments:

Heather J @ TLC Book Tours said...

It sounds like a book that definitely took you outside your comfort zone!

Thanks for being a part of the tour.

Nadia said...

Heather, it definitely does just that. An eye-opening reading experience for sure! Thanks for having me on the tour ;)