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kaje_harper 's review for:
Axel's Pup
by Kim Dare
This book isn't perfect, but I found myself rereading it and loving it again, a week after the first time. That earns a book 5 stars from me.
In this alternate-world contemporary, werewolves were discovered, captured, and declared second-class citizens by humans a few generations ago.
Axel is a gay man who runs a biker bar, which is also a club for gay men who are into BDSM. He leads The Black Dragons Motorcycle Club, and acts as the top Dom in the bar as well, as owner and keeper of the rules. There are men in his club he cares about, plus some hangers-on who like the scene, or the bikes, or are just curious, and some folks who drop by just to drink. He's content, but a little solitary.
Then one night the door opens and a young man in a leather jacket comes inside, leaving his classic bike parked out front. He takes off his sunglasses, and his eyes make it clear he's a werewolf. His fierce determination to take on any bet, any fight, makes him interesting, and the hint of submission when he looks at Axel, and only Axel, makes him desirable. Axel is a man looking for a sub to care for, and from that first night, in this tough, surprising, silent and defensive young man, Axel has found his mission.
Bayden has very little of his own - the bike his grandfather gave him, the clothes he stands up in and a few more, the mother and sick grandfather who let him help them out with money now and then, and his pride as a wolf. There may be laws that say he's a lesser breed, rules and customs that let humans shake him down or send him out of their establishments like a dog, but he walks his line. No trouble, but no concessions. Let them take from him, but only if they pay. He trusts no human. But when he sees the big blond clearly-alpha man behind the bar, and finds out that in this one place he will be treated as no more and no less than any human customer, he feels that icy mistrust cracking, just a little bit.
This book has the mix of angst, trust-building, sex, and personal growth that appeals to me. The clash of wolf and human culture, and the misunderstandings that arise naturally from it, caught at my heart. The BDSM is notable, but a lot of the focus is on the D/s relationship, and the SM part is not the primary focus of the story. This is a book about trust, and care, and learning to fit two very-different people into one relationship that nurtures them both. Despite a few flaws, and a moderate number of typos, this book pulled me into that zone where anything that interrupts my reading is resented, where the characters shine more brightly than real life, and where I come out of the story with regret and the best kind of hangover.
In this alternate-world contemporary, werewolves were discovered, captured, and declared second-class citizens by humans a few generations ago.
Axel is a gay man who runs a biker bar, which is also a club for gay men who are into BDSM. He leads The Black Dragons Motorcycle Club, and acts as the top Dom in the bar as well, as owner and keeper of the rules. There are men in his club he cares about, plus some hangers-on who like the scene, or the bikes, or are just curious, and some folks who drop by just to drink. He's content, but a little solitary.
Then one night the door opens and a young man in a leather jacket comes inside, leaving his classic bike parked out front. He takes off his sunglasses, and his eyes make it clear he's a werewolf. His fierce determination to take on any bet, any fight, makes him interesting, and the hint of submission when he looks at Axel, and only Axel, makes him desirable. Axel is a man looking for a sub to care for, and from that first night, in this tough, surprising, silent and defensive young man, Axel has found his mission.
Bayden has very little of his own - the bike his grandfather gave him, the clothes he stands up in and a few more, the mother and sick grandfather who let him help them out with money now and then, and his pride as a wolf. There may be laws that say he's a lesser breed, rules and customs that let humans shake him down or send him out of their establishments like a dog, but he walks his line. No trouble, but no concessions. Let them take from him, but only if they pay. He trusts no human. But when he sees the big blond clearly-alpha man behind the bar, and finds out that in this one place he will be treated as no more and no less than any human customer, he feels that icy mistrust cracking, just a little bit.
This book has the mix of angst, trust-building, sex, and personal growth that appeals to me. The clash of wolf and human culture, and the misunderstandings that arise naturally from it, caught at my heart. The BDSM is notable, but a lot of the focus is on the D/s relationship, and the SM part is not the primary focus of the story. This is a book about trust, and care, and learning to fit two very-different people into one relationship that nurtures them both. Despite a few flaws, and a moderate number of typos, this book pulled me into that zone where anything that interrupts my reading is resented, where the characters shine more brightly than real life, and where I come out of the story with regret and the best kind of hangover.