Finding Eden by Kele Moon

Title:  Finding Eden

Series:  Eden 02

Author:  Kele Moon

Genre:  Contemporary BDSM

Length:  Novel

Publisher:  Ellora’s Cave (August 18, 2011)

Heat Level:  Explicit

Heart Rating:  ♥♥♥♥♥%Hearts

Blurb:  Handsome, angry and spoiled, Danny Carlow struggles to find his place in the world when his hatred for authority makes survival difficult. The only thing keeping him from completely giving up and turning to a life of crime is his friendship with clean-cut Paul Mattling. More than his conscience and best friend, Paul’s also the one Danny secretly pines for with every ounce of his being.

Paul is a natural over-achiever with a football scholarship and straight A’s to boast about. Yet he’s haunted by an abusive childhood that’s left him more scarred than anyone realizes. Looking for an escape from his demons, Paul has his own deviant secrets, ones he doesn’t want anyone, especially Danny, to know about.

When dark desires are accidentally revealed, Danny and Paul end up coming together in a clash of wild passion more tumultuous than either of them could have anticipated. Tasting the forbidden is sweet, but it turns the tables on their relationship, putting everything, even their lifelong friendship, in jeopardy.

Reader Advisory: This story visits the dark side of BDSM, where the only thing more intense than the scenes the characters participate in, is the love they have for one another. Please note there is a very brief F/F encounter.

Product Link:  http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9519-finding-eden.aspx

Reviewer:   Portia

Review:  Newsflash:  I don’t like bondage.  Don’t get me wrong, a little tie-me-up and ass slappin’ is sexy.  The whole beat me until I bleed…not so much.

Which is why, I don’t get why Kele Moon is one of my favorite writers.  I think it’s because she creates characters that are so real, even my cynical soul can suspend my inner demons and believe the players are getting exactly what they want and need.

This book was particularly satisfying because I already knew the main characters.  Beyond Eden was one of the first bondage titles I’d ever read that didn’t creep me out.  Going back to see how Danny and Paul began was awesome.  And unlike some series that are written out of chronological order…this worked for me.

Paul is a pretty simple guy; he needs pain.  Finding out why was sad.  Danny, on the other hand is much more complex.  For me, his love for Paul was never in question.  But, watching him struggle with his feelings, especially guilt over his own masochistic tendencies was heart wrenching.

I will probably never be a big fan of BDSM, but as long as Kele Moon is writing them, I’ll be reading them.  Highly recommend to anyone who wants an intense love story between two young men, trying to find themselves and each other.

Thommie’s Two Cents: I love BDSM stories, and I adore them when they are written with the passion the genre deserves. This is one such story, however it is not a simple one, not light in any way and there is some serious dark side some people might not like at all. Me? I loved it.

Danny is a rich boy, but angry beyond what one would call normal. He hates authority. He hates not being on top of things he hates his father. Everything makes him want to unleash the anger but for Paul, his best friend and golden boy who grounds him and makes him want to be better. Paul is also his tormentor as Danny for years pines for him, loving him bone deep. In short, Danny is a bomb waiting to explode.

But Paul is not the golden boy everyone sees. Deep down there is darkness and abuse, deep down his soul hurts and he tries to find that elusive nirvana anyway he can, and that leads him to danger so real that even his life hangs on the line. When Danny finds out the truth, things between them burn hot and there are only two things that can happen when there is such passion and tension between two people. Either they’ll crash or they’ll fly together.

I loved it. The eroticism was sensational and the way these two dealt with their vices simply spectacular. I’m not a pain slut but even I felt like I was about to fly with these too, they were so great together. I loved the fact that nothing came easy, I loved the fact that the enormity of their situation was stressed properly, how their decisions affected both of them, the pain, the hurt, the love that was yet wasn’t. This is not a romance, this is a love-story, and as such, it was filled with pain, loss, and emotions that often drive near insanity. It takes you spinning along with them and you have no idea what you’re going to experience next.

I must say that this book just sucked me in and made me its slave in more ways than one. The characters were not only alluring, but it felt like they had glue in their aura and I couldn’t escape. Both are touched by darkness and abuse, both reacts to it differently. They are the epitome of sadist and utter masochist. They are glorious together. Now I don’t need to be either, or to understand how someone could get off on pain for me to accept it as a fact or simply enjoy the read. If you read this book with intention to understand in a psychological level the workings and wirings of a sadomasochistic relationship I think this is not a book for you, but if you want to read about fire that burns hot, the inevitability and hold the dark passions have on two brilliantly written characters, then I’m absolutely certain you’ll love it.

And then, there was the end, and oh my, what a turn. At that point I felt like it would never happen, and the pair would literally revel in that sick fire until they ceased existing. It all depended on Danny (something I felt a bit awkward about) and he rose to the situation, and he made me want to squeeze him so hard he cracked. The promise for a fantastic sequel is there and I can’t wait to see how these two manage to overcome the haze that blinded them through the entire book and grow into their possibilities. As for this one, it’s strongly recommended.

The Queen's Consorts by Kele Moon

The Queen's ConsortTitle: The Queen’s Consorts

Author: Kele Moon

Genre: Science Fiction & Space Opera / Ménage (MMF)

Length: Novel

Publisher: Loose Id (April 23rd, 2013)

Heat Level: Explicit

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4 Hearts

Reviewer: Thommie

Blurb: The Queen’s Consorts. Just laying eyes on one is a death sentence. So when Sari, who spent most of her life on the streets, ends up entangled in a steamy relationship with the two most forbidden men on the planet, she knows it can’t end well.

After a brutal attack, Sari’s taken to the Sacred City, exposing her to the secret lives of the Rayians who rule in the long lost queen’s absence. It’s in this darkly sexual world where she first meets the legendary consorts.

Too handsome and talented for their own good, Calder and Taryen have learned to trust only each other in order to survive. Bred to be feared warriors and exclusive companions to a queen, instead they’re slaves to other Rayians desires for them.

Their brutal lives make the two consorts hesitant to care for Sari when she’s unexpectedly dumped in their laps, but they soon discover she’s different from the cruel women they’re used to serving. Drawn to Sari on a soul deep level, Calder and Taryen can’t seem to stop themselves from going back for one more taste of the beautiful outsider… even when it puts the fate of the entire world in jeopardy.

Product Link: http://www.loose-id.com/the-queen-s-consorts.html

Review: Oh Holy Mother of Hades, what a story. What a book. What an unexpected surprise to have found such a lovely read. See I’m always wary when I read ménage that involves a pair of males and a female, because most books I’ve read have been such a disappointment, but Oh My God, this book was excellent.

The story takes place in a world that Ms. Moon created with (I can only imagine) such care and devotion. The planet Auroria has a peculiar lifestyle and magic. The females are not only respected there, but called divine, especially those of the Capital. They are called Sisters of The Great Mother (the Queen) and each of them forms a bond with a pair of life mates (two men). The energy between them comes then to a balance and the bond is a very strong one. The Queen herself has great powers and the life-force of the very planet is linked with her. When the Queen is happy the sun shines bright, when she is sad rain falls from the sky and when she is mad well… you get the picture. The Queen becomes stronger once she has created her bond with her consorts. They must also be very strong and powerful to help balance her and keep her happy so the rest of the planet can benefit from her powers. Hence, they are joined with their Queen since birth, their time of birth close together. They share a life time only to be driven apart from their Queen for one year when they are seventeen. During that year the Queen must stay away from her consorts to appreciate their presence and never take it for granted and the Consorts themselves learn how to best please and serve her so when they finally come back, the sun will shine and their bond will remain sacred forever.

This is the world we dive into. This is the concept and their culture. This is how the very ménage that could be trite transforms to a majestic relationship.

But the last Queen was murdered along with one of her consorts and the Princess was rushed out of the walls of the Palace to safety. Ever since, the planet plunged in darkness and people forgot what sunshine was like. The commoners suffered in poverty and the Council of the Sisters gained great power, their greed insatiable, and their hunger for blood terrifying. The few Royalist still devoted to the Queen are powerless and unable to prevent the most horrible thing of all, the abuse, violation and molestation of the Queen’s Consorts in the hands of the Sisters. The pair that share the same soul with the Queen, the very one that are supposed to be hers and hers alone are treated no more than sex-slaves and constantly tortured by vicious women in order to kill the moral of those who still believe in the Queen’s return.

No, this is not just a story with a threesome thrown in there and focusing on the sex scenes. This is a wholesome story of love, lust, magic and power. This is a story that will grab your heart in one fierce hold and shake you to the core. You’ll shudder in the violence that is hidden inside these pages, you’ll want to kill, maim, split in two and rip hearts out. You’ll want to be there in the midst of the battlefield, because there will be battles fighting when they make the final stand.

And you’ll fall in love divine. You’ll feel the brilliance of something unique and you’ll probably think “what a great, great read”. I truly loved this book. Everything in it called to me. Before I knew it I was so much engrossed with the characters, their story and suffering that the anger on their behalf took me by surprise, an excellent achievement for the author, quite a talented hand there.

And I could stand here writing and writing forever for this one, but I think I have already said enough. I have given you the set up where the story lies but you’ll have to take that step and jump into this world yourself and feel the story first hand, I can only say that it’s beyond worth it. Strongly recommended.

Packing Heat by Kele Moon

Title:  Packing Heat

Series:  Heat

Author:  Kele Moon

Genre:   Contemporary

Length: Novella

Publisher:  Loose Id (January 31, 2012)

Heat Level:  Explicit

Heart Rating:  ♥♥♥♥♥4 ½ Hearts

Blurb:  Dark and brooding firefighter Brad Archer has spent months denying his attraction to his roommate, police officer Gavin Connolly. Gavin is just the kind of guy he likes: tall, tough, and buff enough to actually handle Brad’s big size and rough nature.

To hide his real feelings Brad holds the handsome, seemingly straight cop at arms’ length until a shooting at work leaves Gavin a little too vulnerable to ignore. What starts out as a simple attempt to comfort his roommate blows up into something wild, sexual, and wholly unexpected when Gavin wants more from Brad than a strong firefighter’s shoulder to lean on.

The sexual magnetism drawing the two of them together forces secrets to be revealed, and though the sex is mind-blowing it may not be worth weathering the storms their relationship could stir up. In order to protect him, Brad realizes he loves Gavin enough to let him go. The problem is—the stubborn cop may not let him.

Publisher’s Note: This book contains explicit sexual situations, graphic language, and material that some readers may find objectionable: bondage, male/male sexual practices.

Product Link:  http://www.loose-id.com/Packing-Heat.aspx

Reviewer:   Portia

Review:  You might not know it, but Kele Moon is the only writer who ever made bondage sexy, for me.  So you can imagine my surprise that while Packing Heat is uber sexy, not a single whip is in the mix.  There is a great scene with handcuffs, but hey, Gavin is a cop…

This really was a great read.  I loved the fact that both Gavin and Brad are strong, sexy men.  Both have very dangerous jobs and can really be there for each other.  There were quite a few times when I wanted to pop the back of Brad’s head.  His thinking was a bit warped, at times.  It was okay for him to be openly gay, at the fire station, but somehow, Gavin shouldn’t have to deal with homophobic jerks on his job.  Huh?

I must admit, Gavin is my favorite.  He doesn’t really understand why Brad does it for him, but he is more than willing to explore the sexual possibilities.  And when he realizes what Brad has been trying to ignore, that they are perfect for each other, he has no problem welding those handcuffs.

Kele Moon does an amazing job of getting into her character’s head.  While it irritated the hell out of me that Brad was willing to throw his relationship away, because we spend so much time in his head, I understood where he was coming from.  Same with Gavin.  He may start out looking like your typical bi-curious guy, but he is hiding a few secrets that blow that theory out of the water.  By the end, it was hard to tell who was the seduced and who was the seducer.

This story is very well-written and has a nice pace.  The sex is steamy, rough at times, but always loving.  Not quite “gay for you”, but close.  I really enjoy Kele Moon’s BDSM Eden series, but Packing Heat is a series I will have on automatic pre-order.  I really hope she’s somewhere creating another hot couple of men looking for love in all the wrong places.  Highly recommend.