A review by taliejane
The Subs Club by J.A. Rock

emotional funny hopeful sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Ouch my heart 😭 
A year ago, David and his three best friends, whom he loves above all else, lost the fifth member of their group, Hal, in a BDSM breath-play scene gone wrong. Since then, David's been struggling to understand what happened and to feel comfortable in his community. How can he truly ever trust in a dom when he sees people playing unsafely at every turn? This is why he founds The Subs Club, an online blog for subs and bottoms to have open discussions and to review the local doms. Then he meets D (a big burly dom, also called David) and starts to think again about reviewing such intimate moments with another person. 
Okay so I'm not great at summaries. But this book is so unexpectedly gut-punchingly moving. Of course there's lots of kinky sex too, and it's also written beautifully mind-you. Full of realistic and human descriptions of intimacy instead of porny scenes with reality defying logistics and people who are never awkward or dorky during sex. 
No, but the real HEART of this book is a story of four close friends going through terrible grief and trying to rebuild their identities in relation to their community. It is about communicating your needs to your partner and how much bravery that can take. It's about forgiveness and the cruelty of life. Honestly, this is such a page-turner. I raced through it like with a Kris Ripper or Alexis Hall book. Highly recommend to anyone who loves sexy, queer romance with soul and poignancy. 
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