He never knew boundaries could be so sexy. It took Ross Jensen ten months to lose 98 pounds, but the day he makes Lifetime in Weight Watchers he loses another 220 in an instant when his boyfriend dumps him. He’d never heard of a “chubby chaser,” but he’d been living with one for a year. Ross’s BFF offers him her guest room and drags him out to her favorite sex club. He’s hoping for a little … hoping for a little action—or at least a distraction.
When Miles Shigihara is not busy designing meditation gardens, he practices Shibari. He’s looking forward to a relaxing evening at his club, but is captivated by first-timer Ross. Miles doesn’t hesitate to approach Ross and treat him—and a small audience—to a steamy scene.
Irresistible chemistry and a shared love of ropes draws them together, but Ross will need to leave his body issues behind and get comfortable discussing his boundaries if he’s to have a future with the man who’s managed to tie his heart in knots.
Warnings: This book features a corporate sensitivity trainer with an agenda who experiences sexual assault, an awesome gal-pal who helps him through it, a sexy Japanese rope artist, and the unconventional sex club of my dreams.
This book was previously published. Portions have been re-written for the Second Edition. This Special Edition includes an additional 8,000 words of Shibari and wedded bliss.
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I loved the description of Ross as someone who had just lost a large amount of weight and was exploring life with a different sized body and all that implied. I was also intrigued by the use of shibari as a plot point and hoped that the author would be able to take me into that experience in a realistic way. The story was all I hoped for and more. The shirbari is described in beautiful detail so you can see and feel the experience completely and Ross and Miles are two absolutely amazing characters. This is a do not miss read.
This was a good story. I love reading kink stories, this one seemed to move a little too fast for me. I didn’t feel the connection for the characters so much. I was left wanting more with no HEA or even a HFN. I’m voluntarily reviewing from an advanced copy that I received.
3.5 stars Ross and Miles
First of all, I want to say it was a good story. The content was solid.
The main characters were engaging, lovable.
The title sounded promising. When Miles started with the ropes on Ross, gosh that was just wonderful. I was a bit disappointed about the practice of Shibari, there were just two sessions, the rest, or a big part, of this story was all about Ross and Miles trying to get together and get interrupted by diverse things.
After the third time, I got a bit annoyed. Later on, it got better.
When Miles and Ross finally had their second Shibari session it was so beautiful, the sensuality was everything, I could follow Miles hands and Ross his emotions, but d*mn the writing stopped at a highly sensitive moment annnd… it was morning already. Sorry, that was a bit of an anticlimax, frustrating. I would have loved some afterglow
For the most part, I loved the story, there were moments where I thought it would go into depth, it didn’t.
Overall a story worth the effort to be read.
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2nd edition, 2020 release
**Trigger warning: On page sexual assault.**
This book is kind of a hodge podge of tropes. First, you have the body image/self worth trope. Then, you have a fetish club with a newly dumped newbie. There is also a bit of reciprocated hurt/comfort involved.
Ross has been working hard to lose weight, but when he finally reaches his goal, the surprise his boyfriend has planned is not what he was expecting. By the end of that debacle, Ross has learned some harsh truths. He moves in with his straight BFF from his diet club, and starts his life over. Janet lets him have time, but eventually, she is ready to take him out, and to a special club.
Once there, Ross is uncomfortable at first. That is, until a mesmerizing man approaches him and makes a request. Now, the scene is hot, and although no drugs or alcohol have been consumed, from the moment “Shaggy” speaks to Ross, it’s as if he is in a dreamlike state of some sort. From this point on, Ross has a one track mind for the most part.
Ross’s brother, Rune, is an MMA fighter, and comes to town for a local fight. The attraction between Janet and Rune is obvious, so when he is hurt, he stays at her house with Janet and Ross. It is during this time that Ross’s ex makes a reappearance. At first, he just comes across as desperate and pushy, but then he goes to far. And, although there was no “violence,” his actions have far reaching effects on Ross’s life.
You have to have patience with this book. About halfway through, the author leaves the first person POV behind, and we finally get inside of Miles’s head. He works hard to maintain a level of calm and peacefulness. But, he is in the middle of a battle that could irreparably change the course of his life.
When the two finally get together, the insta-lust is clear. They obviously develop more personal feelings, but the attraction and intensity is what brought them together. They are able to be there for each other for support, and Ross is ready for a fresh start to romance with his eyes wide open. There are other LGBTQ rights discussed in the book that were pertinent to the time of the original release date for this book, and they are important; I just didn’t go into those aspects in this review.
Happy reading!
* I received an ARC of this book and I am leaving my honest review. *
M/M
Shibari between the 2 MCs
Other mild kink mentioned not involving the MCs
Short story
I was given a free arc copy from the author and the GRR arc team for review.
* warning there is a scene with sexual assault and self blame that could be a trigger
I certainly didn’t hate it but I also didn’t love it. The first thing I will note is that my kindle read 86% 32 mins approx left and it said the end. So that kind of caught me off guard. There is a chapter from another book included at the end but it’s of a didn’t series. I won’t say that it ended in a cliffhanger completely but it did stop at semi cliffhanger (bad timing). Right when they were starting to get closer emotionally and physically. I did not like that.
I enjoyed both the MCs and found them to be very likeable. I also liked Ross’s family and his bestie. I thought the 2 MCs had good chemisty in the scenes where they were together.
It was the plot that was just ok for me. There wasn’t many scenes that had the 2 MCs together until near the end so there wasn’t time to show a relationship building up. I didn’t get that connection that I would normally get in other books. It seems like the majority focus was on family and jobs and leaving a crap ex behind and dealing with dieting and self image issues. It just kind of lacked interest for me. Though I didn’t struggle to finish it. I did read it all in one read. I just would of preferred more focus on the couple.
This was a super short sexy read. I totally enjoyed the immediate connection between Ross and Miles. Miles is an master of Shibari and Ross is enthralled from the beginning. Totally new to the kink world that was introduced by his current roommate. Ross so deserved happiness. He had just come out of a relationship that ended badly and hurt him. Although I enjoyed the book, it just felt lacking in the story line. There was something missing. Possibly more depth to their story. Either way, it was a very good book.
I received an ARC from the GRR Team and voluntarily read it for an honest review.
ill admit i loved this.. the different things going on.. the hurt and comfort.. and i enjoy the trigger warnings so that was a plus for me.. i liked reading this and it was very well written.
I enjoy finding new authors. Gay Romance Reviews provided me with a copy of this and I looked forward to the story from the blurb. It is a okay story. It took off with me happy for the character. He had reached his Weight Watchers goal. From there things for him didn’t go as well. He gets dumped by his boyfriend, moves in with his bff and starts facing his future. I loved the instant attraction between Ross and Miles. I loved the first Shibari scene when Ross felt so out of control. His going to the club and finding out about it was entertaining. As their relationship moves along I enjoyed the secondary characters. Ross’s brother and bff made for some emotional moments. The second Shibari started out to be good but I felt it was too short and no real aftercare. I also felt the ending was abrupt. Should have been so much better.
I’m updating my review after reading the next in the series. It’s like a totally different author wrote the second story. The characters from this story are more finalized.