SLOW SATISFACTION by Cecilia Tan (August 26, 2014)
Synopsis:
James has finally pushed Karina beyond her limit—not her limit for kinky sex play, but for his extreme secrecy. She has had enough and breaks things off. But James won’t give up on Karina and will do whatever it takes to get her back. He’s ready to share his deepest, darkest secrets, but is Karina ready to hear them?
James offers Karina not only the truth but a place at his side… onstage. He wants Karina to star in his final musical production and enter his life and his world fully and completely. As the two work together, they rekindle the trust and love they’d lost. But James’s world is full of deceit. When he is blackmailed by an unscrupulous music industry executive, James must give in to unreasonable demands or risk exposure of his and Karina’s secret sex life.
Will Karina and James’s love be strong enough to withstand the many obstacles being thrown their way?
Ellen’s Review:
This is a very adult, very sensual and erotic story, with wonderful writing. James is an incredibly memorable character, controlling, secretive, brilliantly talented, and Karina really comes into her own in this story.
I loved how Karina stood strong with James while she travels to take care of her mother after her mother has an accident. I also loved the side story involving her mother’s boyfriend, Jill, and the various family issues. But it is the chemistry and the scenes between Karina and James that are thrilling and incredibly erotic and really make this a novel that is a step above most erotica out there now.
Karina is also funny and I loved some of the light-hearted moments in the book. They lightened up some of the heavier emotional scenes. This is a fantastic series if you love super-steamy stories with strong, dominant males and really great writing. This is not a heavy BDSM book and the characters are all well-written and memorable. I absolutely loved the ending and I cant wait to read more from this author.
(*ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.)
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Excerpt:
“I have a proposal for you.”
“I’m all ears.”
“I don’t want to only tell you about my life, Karina. I want you to join it. Be a part of it. That means being a part of what’s happening in Las Vegas.”
“What do you mean by ‘be a part of it’?”
“Answer me a question first. What’s happening with your university now?”
“I have to speak to the dean. Best case scenario, they accept my thesis as is, rubber stamp me with a PhD, and tell me to get the hell out. Worst case scenario, they make me start over with a new advisor, writing a new thesis. Honestly, if that’s what they want . . . I don’t know if it’ll be worth jumping through those hoops. If other opportunities are beckoning me, I don’t have a lot of incentive to go back. Other than pride and not wanting to have wasted five years of my life.”
Not to mention the student loan money.
“I see. Well, I am hoping you might be able to defer whatever might occur there for another semester so you can join me in the performance.”
“You mean—”
“As a dancer.”
I shook my head instantly. “I can’t measure up to a troupe of professionals. I’ll look ridiculous.”
“I assure you you’re wrong about that. Well, if the performance were tomorrow, maybe. But we have a few months, Karina, and I’ll be expecting you to work with a trainer every day. I need to get back in shape myself.” He stretched one arm toward the far window and unfurled his hand elegantly, probably thinking about dance exercises. “I haven’t danced or sung since the night we met.”
“Have you missed it?”
“I have, a little. I don’t miss the grind, though. I don’t miss having to keep up the facade all the time. I never realized how exhausting it was until I stopped.” He leaned over to kiss me on the cheek. “I’m an incredibly lucky bastard.”
“Are you?”
“Yes, because if I had let my guard down for anyone but you, it would have ended in a ball of flames.”
“It nearly did anyway.”
“But it didn’t, because of you. Because of the wonderfulness of you. You’re special, Karina.” He offered me the bottle again and I took another sip. “How much longer do you think you’ll be in Ohio?”
“I’m not sure. My aunt Tera called today to announce she’s showing up tomorrow to stay for two weeks. If that’s true, I won’t have to stay.” I did have to get back to the city. To deal with my landlord and the university and who knew what else.
James was looking at me thoughtfully.
“What? What is it?”
He smiled. “I’m just noticing how many strong, independent women you seem to have in your life.”
“Well, I don’t know if I’d count my mother as strong . . . though it seems like she picked up a backbone in the hospital!”
“She raised you and your siblings on her own. I’d say she can probably lay claim to independence if she wants.”
“True. And her opinions are never weak. Those are always quite strong.” I glanced in the direction of the house. “I guess I should be getting back.”
“Well, if you think you’ll be staying more than a few days, I’ll contract a dance trainer for you here, to start getting ready for the performances.” He folded one of my hands into his. “That is, if you agree to my proposal. You still haven’t said yes.”
Of course he would notice that. “I think it’s questionable I’m good enough to get on stage with you. Maybe you ought to have someone besides yourself look at me. I don’t think you’re exactly an impartial judge.”
“And you’re far more talented than you think. How about this? We’ll hold an audition for principal dancer. I won’t tell the judges who you are. We’ll let them give their opinions. The final decision will still be up to me, of course, but you can get an honest evaluation of where you stand in relation to others. If they think you look ridiculous, they’ll say so without hesitation.”
I slipped my shoes on. “All right. When?”
“Let’s say in a month. That’ll give you time to prepare.”
“Okay. I mean, yes. That sounds like a plan.” I slipped my arms around his neck and kissed him. “Now, are you and Stefan planning to sit out here all night?”
“I defer to Stefan on our security plans. If there is any hint of trouble, though, promise me, Karina, that you’ll contact us immediately.”
“Yes, of course.”
“Good. Then you should probably sneak back into the house.”
I kissed him on the forehead and grinned. “You know, I never did this when I was a teenager.”
“Did what?”
“Sneak out of the house after my mother was asleep to have sex in a guy’s car.” I kissed him on the mouth then. “Something tells me it was worth the wait.”
About the author:
Cecilia Tan writes about her many passions, from erotic fantasy to baseball, from her home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She is the author of many books, including The Siren and the Sword, The Tower and the Tears, The Incubus and the Angel, Black Feathers, Mind Games, White Flames,and The 50 Greatest Yankee Games. She has edited over 50 anthologies of erotica for Red Silk Editions, Thunder’s Mouth Press, Blue Moon Books, Masquerade Books, Ravenous Romance, and for the publishing house she founded, Circlet Press. Her short fiction has appeared in Ms. Magazine, Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine, Best American Erotica, and many other places, and her nonfiction on baseball has been in Slow Trains, Baseball Ink, Gotham Baseball Magazine, Yankees Magazine, Yankees Annual, and elsewhere.
