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A review by michaeljpdx
Permanent by Megan Slayer
2.0
This review was written for BDSM Book Reviews
River Cortland is severely damaged goods. As "Permanent" opens, he's shivering in the cold outside a sex club, beaten, bruised and bloodied. The story of what happened only comes out in bits and pieces as the book unfolds. It seems that River has suffered under the attentions of a very bad domme. She wanted him to be a pain slut, which he's not, but she thought she could make him one. She didn't respect his boundaries, and when he tried to safe-word she gagged him. Then she let her friends at the club where they played do whatever they wanted to inflict the maximum amount of pain and humiliation. River is not only physically beaten, he's also terrified. He was barebacked by he doesn't know how many men, while others pissed and ejaculated on the open whip wounds on his back. He has no idea what kind of STDs he may have picked up.
To the rescue comes Tory, River's roommate. He answers River's panicked call to come to the club and take him home. River refuses to go to the hospital, so Tory helps him wash and holds him together through the night. The gay-identified River has always had a crush on his roommate, who he thinks is straight, and quite a player as well.
Tory, a sportscaster for a local television station, is a player alright, only he plays for both teams. He's had his eye on River since the day he moved in. Once River recovers physically from his ordeal, Tory makes his move on the surprised River. The two start an intense physical relationship, but for River there's a problem: Despite his bad experience, he's still a man who needs to submit. He has to find out if Tory can dominate him before he can know if the relationship can go anywhere. So, he brings Tory to another club to meet his friend Griffin and his sub Tina.
Griffin and Tina introduce Tory to the D/s scene, and Tory turns out to have a strong dominant streak, which surprises him as much as it pleases River. The rest of the book is mostly consumed with a drawn-out will-they / won't-they story line. Both men have reasons to hold back. River is still traumatized by what his domme did to him. Although he's tested free of any diseases, he still feels tainted by the experience, unworthy of being loved and unable to open up to Tory about what was done to him. Tory is a man with real commitment issues. He's never been in a long term relationship, with a man or a woman, and things with River are obviously complicated. He also has concerns about what coming out might do to his career.
While the scene in which River is brutalized was obviously intense, it's never described in any detail. We get only brief glimpses of it through occasional flashbacks. The only BDSM actually described in the story is the light D/s scene with Griffin and Tina. There is lots of sex between Tory and River, and as a one-handed read "Permanent" isn't bad. However, the author seemed to be going for romance, and on that score the book isn't very successful. The storytelling is rather muddled. At times it's hard to tell who is talking, or even telling the story, since the point of view switches back and forth between the two main characters. The story is drawn out mainly by having one of the characters undergo a major mood swing. This happens so much that it got rather annoying. The writer needed to find another plot device.
River Cortland is severely damaged goods. As "Permanent" opens, he's shivering in the cold outside a sex club, beaten, bruised and bloodied. The story of what happened only comes out in bits and pieces as the book unfolds. It seems that River has suffered under the attentions of a very bad domme. She wanted him to be a pain slut, which he's not, but she thought she could make him one. She didn't respect his boundaries, and when he tried to safe-word she gagged him. Then she let her friends at the club where they played do whatever they wanted to inflict the maximum amount of pain and humiliation. River is not only physically beaten, he's also terrified. He was barebacked by he doesn't know how many men, while others pissed and ejaculated on the open whip wounds on his back. He has no idea what kind of STDs he may have picked up.
To the rescue comes Tory, River's roommate. He answers River's panicked call to come to the club and take him home. River refuses to go to the hospital, so Tory helps him wash and holds him together through the night. The gay-identified River has always had a crush on his roommate, who he thinks is straight, and quite a player as well.
Tory, a sportscaster for a local television station, is a player alright, only he plays for both teams. He's had his eye on River since the day he moved in. Once River recovers physically from his ordeal, Tory makes his move on the surprised River. The two start an intense physical relationship, but for River there's a problem: Despite his bad experience, he's still a man who needs to submit. He has to find out if Tory can dominate him before he can know if the relationship can go anywhere. So, he brings Tory to another club to meet his friend Griffin and his sub Tina.
Griffin and Tina introduce Tory to the D/s scene, and Tory turns out to have a strong dominant streak, which surprises him as much as it pleases River. The rest of the book is mostly consumed with a drawn-out will-they / won't-they story line. Both men have reasons to hold back. River is still traumatized by what his domme did to him. Although he's tested free of any diseases, he still feels tainted by the experience, unworthy of being loved and unable to open up to Tory about what was done to him. Tory is a man with real commitment issues. He's never been in a long term relationship, with a man or a woman, and things with River are obviously complicated. He also has concerns about what coming out might do to his career.
While the scene in which River is brutalized was obviously intense, it's never described in any detail. We get only brief glimpses of it through occasional flashbacks. The only BDSM actually described in the story is the light D/s scene with Griffin and Tina. There is lots of sex between Tory and River, and as a one-handed read "Permanent" isn't bad. However, the author seemed to be going for romance, and on that score the book isn't very successful. The storytelling is rather muddled. At times it's hard to tell who is talking, or even telling the story, since the point of view switches back and forth between the two main characters. The story is drawn out mainly by having one of the characters undergo a major mood swing. This happens so much that it got rather annoying. The writer needed to find another plot device.