Ilhem

I am usually okay with overlooking characterization and plot development when I am in the mood for smut fun, but this story didn’t press my buttons (or the wrong ones), and I steadily lost interest in the characters, the story and the smut.

I believe that the author aimed at telling the emotions in the porn. Sam’s kink, usually perceived and pointed out as shameful, degrading and dangerous objectively provides an interesting story arc, as long as it is about him getting rid of shame, coming to terms with his nature, and blossoming in his sexuality with a partner that can keep it safe, sane and consensual. It is understood that it is respectable as such, even without the power of love that makes it all beautiful.

Subjectively, it’s another story… My issue is that characters’ traits are exaggerated until becoming caricatures, and plot lines are far-stretched until caricaturing the story.

For instance, it’s already a hardship growing up in general and getting your kicks of being used in particular, I am not convinced that more drama in the background was a necessity. As a matter of fact, it put me off instead of involving me emotionally.  Oh, the first sex scenes between Sam and Max got me all hot and bothered, but even the endorphins couldn’t make me stomach the poor orphan string being pulled on excessively.

In the same vein, the growing D/s relationship and its conflicts became for me no more than successive variants of how stupid and insecure Sam can feel, and how afraid to fuck it up Max is. No matter how understandable it is, it became very repetitive, simplistic and sappy for lack of exploring something edgier.

The sex is kinky. Yes. It also stopped being hot when the story stopped titillating me.

The road trip is a great idea and could have provided entertaining twists and turns, as well as relief in every sense of the word. It did, only in a too small extent for my liking.

Of course, I am dissecting all this afterwards and rationalising the fact that I didn’t have any chemistry with the characters, even more so with their sex life, and that in my eyes, the emo killed the story and the porn.

This review is part of a group review that you can find here