Book Review: Brie Learns the Art of Submission by Red Phoenix

Synopsis: First published as the popular nine-part eBook serial, Brie Learns the Art of Submission is now available as a full-length novel.

Join Brianna Bennett as she is introduced to the erotic world of submission...

Brie's life changes the day Sir comes to her tiny tobacco shop. His invitation to the Submissive Training Center is about to rock this young woman's world. The renowned school is famous for its elite submissive instruction. She has no idea what will be asked of her or the boundaries that will be pushed. One thing is certain: Brie is about to learn more about herself in six weeks than she has over the previous twenty-two years.

From formal classes, hands-on practicums and weekly auctions, Brie will confront her deepest fears and desires. In the process, she will also forge lifelong friendships with fellow submissives and fall for several of the Center's skilled Doms.

As graduation day approaches things begin to unravel, forcing Brie to make an unexpected choice of Master. Which Dom will ultimately earn her devotion and capture Brie's courageous heart?

The Nerd Rambles: This book really pushed the limits of my comfort, which I suppose is a good thing. I won it in a contest, and it sat on my tablet for a long time--the cover taunting me and daring me to click it open. I did, and started to read.

The book is mind melting hot. It's well written, and actually the story itself is really good. There's romance there as well as the introduction to the culture and way of life. Something that I really like about this book is that it's presented in such a way that it leads me to believe that Ms. Phoenix is involved in the BDSM world. It's in a way educational and exposes the reader to various aspects of the world.

The characters grow and change and form relationships. Brie finds herself attracted to three men and forming bonds with them. I like that all three men have positives and negatives and offer challenges to Brie, and in the end there is a happily ever after (or at least for now), but I'm not going to tell which she picks. ;)

Rating: ★★★★☆
Total Length: 479 pages
Available Format: Epub
Publication Date:  November 2012
Author Link:  Red Phoenix on Goodreads

Book Review: Dreamz (Wunder #0.5) by A.R. Von

Synopsis: Wunder may have a normal life now…well, as normal as a freak of nature could have. Half zombie while her job is to hunt bloodthirsty creatures to protect the innocent. It’s the dreams that haunt her and they aren’t nightmares. Wunder dreams of a man, a man made just for her. Is he real, can he be the one she‘s yearned for?

Pete’s world is a lonely one as he wrestles with the reality of being part zombie. His hatred for the creatures that killed his parents drives him to patrol the streets and wipe them all out. His life would be stark, but for the dreams he’s been having; of a woman, so sensuous, so sexy. These alluring visions have become erotic and consuming. He feels as if he made her up to keep from going crazy. Is this life of hunting the walking dead, all there is? Or is she out there, waiting…just for him?

The Nerd Rambles: Plagued (haha see what I did there? Sorry, it won't happen again) by dreams featuring a smokin' hot mystery man, Wunder has to balance her day to day zombie hunting life and deal with her own demons of being half zombie--all the while thinking about her nightly escapades with tall dark and handsome.

This is a prequel of sorts to Wunder, which I've also reviewed and will link further down, and it goes deeper into Wunder's history and her daily life. I liked getting to read more about Wunder's team and more about her day to day life. We're also given more of an introduction to Pete, who is Wunder's love interest. Their chemistry is scorching hot, and well written. I can't get enough of Wunder and the world that Ms. Von has built. I'm really looking forward to book two, or really anything that I can sink my teeth into. (Sorry.)

Review for Wunder

Rating: ★★★★★
Total Length: Not given.
Available Format: Kindle, epub.
Publication Date: June 11, 2013 (Dream Z Dragon Publishing)
Author Link:  A.R. Von on Goodreads

Book Review: The Chief of All Time (Medicine Man #1) by S.R. Howen.

Synopsis: Shannon Running Deer is American Indian by blood, he has forsaken his people's ancient ways to embrace the "modern" world as a wealthy, highly successful trauma surgeon.

His comfortable existence begins to unravel when, seemingly by chance, Shannon finds himself gradually drawn into the past. Pursued by an ancient evil, he knows he can change the future, if he can survive the past.

In the tradition of Diana Gabaldon, S.R. Howen's MEDICINE MAN is a distinctive and atmospheric novel full of spirituality, mystical time travel, romance, passion, and suspense.

The Nerd Rambles: The Chief of All Time is a wonderfully written piece, that weaves together both modern story telling, and ancient lore to create a tapestry of lush story telling. The main character, Shannon Running Deer has abandoned his Blackfoot ancestry to focus on the modern world, and modern medicine. However, he gets entangled in a battle that sends him teetering into the past, the present and tangles with reality and mysticism.

The love for this story and the research and time it took to create it is obvious in each scene. The characters are wonderfully written and the balance between each is really nice. The conflict in this story is well thought out and fits the story well.

I really love how this book has taken Native American culture, their practices and beliefs, and not exploited it as a fetish, or a story quirk, but really made them the focus of the story. They’re thoughtful and real and I found myself getting caught up in that aspect of the story.

However, this really wasn’t the book for me. I found myself getting distracted, and at times confused as to what was going on, and with the shift between present and past I got a little frustrated. While it’s not my personal favorite, the writing was wonderful and while I did enjoy it, I could only recommend it to a certain few of my friends. Simply put, if you enjoy intricately woven stories that blend reality and mysticism with well researched aspects of a culture, don’t hesitate to pick this up. If it sounds interesting at all to you, don’t hesitate to pick this up. You might just fall in love with it.

Rating: ★★★☆☆
Total Length: 278 pages
Available Format: All Epub formats and traditional publication.
Publication Date: November 9, 2012 (Wild Child Publication)
Author's Webpage: S.R. Howen on Goodreads
Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book by BTS Magazine in return for a review. I was not compensated for this review and all thoughts are my own.