Reviews

In the Red by Kari Gregg

mejse75's review against another edition

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3.0

love this book but it lacks an ending. So only 3 Stars from me.
Even though it would have got 5 star, with a better end :-/

michaeljpdx's review against another edition

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4.0

This review originally appeared on BDSM Book Reviews:

Brian Foster is a broken man, scared and alone. He was one of the FBI’s top forensic accountants, able to see patterns in money movement that nobody else could and taking down some of the most dangerous terrorists in the process. But a year ago he was abducted, brutalized to find out what he knew, and left for dead. Now he lives alone on an isolated farm in Maryland, with enough guns to create a small army and enough lights to chase every shadow from every room, all night long.

Even with his debilitating post traumatic stress (PTSD) the FBI wants Foster back on the job. Zachary Murdock is one of the agents they task with getting that done. But while Foster may be heavily damaged, he still has some fight left in him, at least in the daytime, and he rebuffs the agents’ appeal. The agents stay on guard outside the house, on the pretense that Foster is still in danger. Then, one dark and stormy night (don’t worry, the author didn’t put it that way), Murdock thinks Foster, spooked by a power outage, is in trouble and breaks in to help. He finds Foster balled up in a corner desperately trying to keep the demons at bay with a couple of flashlights.

Murdock goes to comfort Foster, and there’s a powerful attraction between the two men. Foster may be a snotty, bullheaded geek but he’s also a man with strong submissive urges that have been bottled up for a year. The big strong G-man, with dominant desires he’s never acted on, is exactly what Brian needs. It soon becomes clear that Murdock’s assignment to this case was no accident.

This is a sweet, sweet story, with just enough darkness around the edges to keep it from being saccharin. While both men acknowledge their attraction to each other, neither is ready to act on it right away. Zachary is still FBI agent Murdock, responsible for Foster’s protection, and Brian needs to learn to trust someone else again.

What follows is several chapters of what can best be described as drawn out foreplay. Fully around a third of the book is devoted to this mating dance, as Zachary discovers just how strong Brian’s need to submit is, as well as how strongly Foster is fighting to throw off his PTSD. When the two finally get some time alone in a bedroom, we get a glimpse into Brian’s tastes when he shows Zachary his toy box. Before his abduction, Brian liked to be tied down and used, and that’s a part of his life he wants back. But in what becomes a recurring theme, Zachary has to understand the difference between what Brian wants and what he needs. Another recurring theme is the degree of control that subs really have over their doms.

There isn’t really any hard core BDSM in this book, due to Brian’s condition. At most, there’s a couple of spankings. But this is a really strong D/s story that unfolds beautifully, which is why I’ve given it a 4 out of 5. This is easily the best work yet I’ve read by this author. The story-telling is strong and consistent. The ending seems to leave room for a sequel, so perhaps we’ll yet get to see Zachary play with some of the things in Brian’s toy box.

shazov's review against another edition

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4.0

As much as I truly enjoyed this book, I did have a few little issues with it. "Insta-love" is one of them. The other was the ending.... please tell me there's going to be more, because I really want to know what happens next. It was very abrupt and left me feeling slightly unsatisfied! And that is a pity because I truly got to love the poor broken Brian and I want to make sure he gets put back together. And strong, sexy Zachary... I need to know that he's alright as well, so please....

captainraccoon's review against another edition

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2.0




Do you want to know what my favourite part of this book was?

The bit where it ended.

In the Red was cliched and boring as fuck. Plus it had the wonderfully lovely trope of cock magic is capable of curing all.


DID. NOT. LIKE.

mrella's review

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3.0

БДСМ тут рядом не стоял. Немного DS и в тот мало верится, так же как и в инста-отношения. Конец непонятный - то ли ждать продолжения, то ли нет. Такое впечатление, что автору просто надоело писать дальше. Два с половиной.
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