Read the first book in the Filthy Rich Billionaires trilogy by USA TODAY bestselling author Caitlin Crews! “Here, now and until I say otherwise…the only thing you have to worry about is doing exactly what I tell you to do.” Socialite Erika Vanderberg has been planning for this night for months. Years. All so she can finally gain entrance to Berlin’s most exclusive sex club. Erika is here for … Erika is here for one person: Dorian Alexander, her brother’s best friend and her secret childhood crush. Only, now her childish crush has been replaced by something hungry, raw and oh-so-wickedly adult. And the moment Erika sees Dorian–his dark eyes intent and focused, that hard body–everything comes crashing into place.
Yes, she’s submissive. And yes, she desperately wants to surrender to Dorian over and over again. Oh yes, please. After one taste, there is already a dark hunger between them…one that threatens to unleash who Erika really is.
Continue the tantalizing journey in the Filthy Rich Billionaires trilogy:
Teach Me
Take Me
Tempt Me
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This book features Erika and Dorian. She’s the spoiled princess of a wealthy family. He’s the best friend of her brother. She is obsessively attracted to Dorian. The only way to get him to notice her is to get involved in the BDSM scene, to which he is heavily involved. This is a best friend’s sister trope. It deals with how Erika sees herself and all the self-sabotage she’s done for so many years. Dorian, for all his seriousness, is the only one to look at her and REALLY see her. This is a short look at their journey to discovering each other.
Full disclosure: I sort of had to force myself to read the first third of the book. But eventually, it picked up and I felt emotionally invested in the characters and their relationship. The story really has a lot going for it – we have BDSM, brother’s best friend, as well as lots of familial drama. I think it’s remarkable how well we get to know Erika as the book progresses. It’s also a feat how Caitlin Crews manages to take her from a spoiled socialite (who I genuinely could not stand) to a fully fleshed out character that I rooted for. I also appreciate the shift and growth we glimpse in Dorian as well. The steamy bits are intense but in an emotional way as opposed to a sexual way, which can sometimes be the case with BDSM scenes, so this ended up being a far different read than what I was expecting. 3 out of 5 wine glasses.
Teach Me by Caitlin Crews is one sizzling hot novel, and it employs one of my favorite romance tropes, best friend’s little sister. If your taste in romance novels tends to be both rather tame and vanilla, I’ll tell you up front that this is not the book for you, because in this short, steamy, Dare romance you’ll learn a lot more about BDSM and power exchange than you ever did in the 50 Shades of Grey series, and although I wish it had been a longer novel, it still gets 5 kinky stars from this reader.
Erika Vanderberg, the female lead, is complex, confused, and sexually curious. She dropped out of college after her second year, something neither her opportunistic, gold-digging and self-absorbed mother, nor her successful, staid and disapproving brother, Conrad, nor his best friend, Dorian Alexander, can understand. Her mother and brother treat her like a failure, and instead of pursuing a career, she’s traveled the world pursuing and sampling more than few men, but her current interest is in kink, but no one has quite given her the thrills she’s after. When we first meet her, she is in Berlin, and hoping that this time, after 6 months of trying, she’ll finally be admitted into the most exclusive and reputably best BDSM club in the world. Her persistence pays off, and she’s finally admitted inside, learned the long list of rules, filled out a lot of paperwork, and finally is allowed to enter the main room. Once a month the club opens its doors to a rare few newbies, and as Erika takes in the sexy sights and sounds, she’s drawn to a public scene that draws quite a crowd, draws her in like a magnet, and stops her in her tracks. The Dom in the scene has a submissive strapped to a St. Andrew’s Cross, and has a whip in his hand. Erika is transfixed and turned on. When the scene ends, he turns around, and she’s not at all surprised to find that the Dom is Dorian, who is reputed to be the most desired Dom at this and any other BDSM club–he’s certainly hinted at his dominance to Erika before, and he’s the main reason she’s there. She wants to explore and expand her knowledge of BDSM, and in this novel does she ever.
Dorian certainly has his reservations about entering into a BDSM relationship with the girl who is the little sister of his closest friend, but the last time they met at a party, Erika no longer seemed like Conrad’s little sister. Dorian realized she was a beautiful and sexy woman with an attitude problem, and he’s not surprised when Erika struggles with following his orders, but her smart mouth and sassy attitude intrigue Dorian, and so begins the story of Erika’s submission, her coming to terms with who she really is and what she really wants, with Dorian as her teacher, and she couldn’t have found a better, more adept, more understanding, or a more demanding one, and among the many demands he issues are two of the hardest for Erika to agree to–finally accepting herself for who she is, and making peace with her brother.
Make no mistake, this is one very hot, very explicit, very well-written, erotic novel, and both main characters are fascinating, each in their own way. While it took this reader some time to warm up to both Erika and Dorian, by the HEA ending, I came to understand and appreciate what each character brought to and learned from the other. For me, this was as spot-on a BDSM romance as I’ve read in some time. I simply couldn’t it down, and kudos to Ms. Crews for getting down to what the lifestyle and power exchange are all about. While I know it isn’t for everyone, every bit of it worked for me, and I’m happy to recommend it.
I voluntarily read and advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions expressed are my own.
I think this book left me as emotionally drained as it did Erika! Best friends’ little sister is one of the best tropes, and it was stunningly done here. Dorian has seen what everyone else has seen in Erika, and he didn’t really think much beyond that. Until he did, and then he realized he probably had been for awhile. As Dorian realizes some things about himself, he also clearly sees Erika, and the parts of her she doesn’t even see herself. Erika has buried so much, bringing out the woman she is takes extra courage. Dorian gives her the strength she needs to do it, by simply being there and allowing her the time and space she needs. Super sexy, high emotions, and a very satisfying HEA!