It has been interesting to read the reviews from people within the BDSM lifestyle. I regret not placing an author’s note at the beginning of My Body-His explaining that this novel is not about a healthy Dom/sub relationship but quite to the contrary. I never set out to depict a story with a healthy power dynamic. Jane’s journey is a dark one with ultimate self-recovery in the end.
I have no issues at all with the lifestyle and my novel was never meant to be a negative commentary of BDSM.
For me there are healthy and unhealthy relationships in any given dynamic and I assumed, falsely I’m now gathering, that people would see Jane’s and Luke’s relationship for what it is. Sometimes two people come together and it’s a toxic mix. I see BDSM as the backdrop in their dysfunctional dance.
Relationships have been the subject matter of novels for forever and typically if you pick up a romance novel you are expecting it to be a good coupling or at least a good resolution and coming together in the end. In erotic suspense, which is the genre of My Body-His, there definitely should not be the same expectations.
I do wonder if people assume because the book is erotica that also means romance. There is a huge difference between erotic suspense and erotic romance.
From reading the reviews and talking to friends I now know that Luke and Jane’s relationship is a TPE (total power exchange). That notion seems to piss off the BDSM reviewers the most because Jane doesn’t seem to really want it. I would argue that she does choose it regardless of the conflict she feels over it.
I must add that I’m loving that people are having passionate responses to My Body-His and I know My Body-His (Marcello) will equally push the edge of your emotions, rooting Jane on to take her life back.
I welcome your comments on this topic.
Warm hugs,
Blakely
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