ARC Review: The Master by Tara Sue Me

” These are introspective books that really get down to the nitty gritty of the whys of D/s.”
~ Under the Covers

The Master is the next in Tara Sue Me’s long standing Submissive series.  This series started off with Abigail and Nathaniel as the central couple, but has moved on to exploring other couples in their Partners in Play BDSM group (though Book 6 also focused on Nate and Abby).  It’s been a bit confusing to me, since it seemed that the spin-off books were to be a separate series called Partners in Play (in which Seduced by Fire is book 1).  Maybe for marketing reasons, that series never continued and the further books written about the members ended up being tagged onto the Submissive line.  Regardless, they’ve been a source of some very hot reading over the last few years.  The Master focuses on Cole and Sasha.  Cole is a British Dom and member of the group known for being quite demanding as a Master.  He’s coming off a long term 24/7 Master/slave relationship.  The group has designated him to train Sasha, a submissive who is just coming back into the lifestyle after a terrible experience with her previous Dom, one that left her scarred and prone to panic attacks.  Sasha knows this is temporary training, as does Cole.  Sasha has no interest in being a slave after what she’s been through.  Or does she?

This series has always held my attention due to the focus on the inner dialog of the characters.  These are introspective books that really get down to the nitty gritty of the whys of D/s.  The characters are also strong and likeable.  Cole and Sasha are no exception.  Cole is known as tough and demanding, skilled at dolling out punishment.   His attention to detail in scenes and his aftercare was wonderful to read as well as the extent to which he built trust in Sasha.  Sasha, despite her past trauma, has confidence and heart.  She knows she wants to be in the lifestyle and won’t back down.   There wasn’t a whole lot of conflict in this story.  It was more about two people finding their way to each other and making the small compromises needed to get there.  The scenes are so hot and Cole’s dirty talking in his English lingo was easy to imagine and really elevated them for me.   I liked the peeks into the other members lives and it’s clear there’s now a setup for the next installment.  This is a perfect feel-good BDSM romance without a whole lot of angst and I was thankful for that.   The emotions are realistic and this one especially leaves the fact that these characters are really well-off out of it.  You know it, but that fact doesn’t impact the story in the least.   I do think these books should have been separated out to define things for readers, but it’s just semantics, I guess.    Regardless, The Master really delivers for readers who want the sweeter side of BDSM.

[about-author author=”Tara Sue Me”]

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