Deviations: Submission

Deviations: Submission
Chris Owen and Jodi Payne
Torquere Press
ISBN: 1-933389-50-8
Fiction, Erotic Romance, BDSM, M/M
Reviewed by Jean Roberta

In this long BDSM romance, Tobias Vincent is Prince Charming: a Dom with a sterling reputation who has occasional moments of self-doubt, especially since his painful breakup with his last submissive boyfriend, who wanted more pain than Tobias felt he could ethically dish out. Through an exclusive club for gentlemen of the leather persuasion, Tobias meets Noah, a hunky young cop who is genuinely submissive but who has issues of his own. Can the two men learn to trust each other? More importantly, can they each trust themselves?
The two authors have done a remarkable job of co-operating on a seamless story about the development of intimacy, including predictable setbacks. Safe, sane and consensual BDSM as a journey of the soul is contrasted with a seamy world of men’s leather bars where not every Dom has a conscience and inexperienced young “meat” can be so damaged that it is hard for them to love again.
Noah learns that he is capable of pleasing a good Master and then shifting out of “sub-space” to function well in his job. Tobias appreciates his “boy,” but knows that he must discover Noah’s limits as well as his own if he really wants them both to be satisfied. While falling in love, both men learn that issues from the past do not go away on their own until they are dealt with.
This e-novel is the first in a projected series of four in the “Deviations” series. The second novel, Domination, is also available, and the third one, Discipline, is due to be out in 2007. The characters are interesting enough to follow through four thick books since they change and interact with each other in believable ways. However, the sex scenes become repetitious after awhile. If you want to follow the storyline, some of the “deviations” can be skimmed over.