Erotic Book Club (E.B.C) 2019

Show Me The Way (Feedback)

If the book has an intended purpose of depicting healthy vs unhealthy relationships, in particular in the BDSM realm, the author may be served well with a bit more research. There are two particular issues I'd like to point out:

The opening justification for why the Junji feels the way he felt about the lifestyle is entirely valid as his ex-gf had cheated on him when he refused to fulfill her kinks rather than having an honest, open dialogue about it. The later reveal also seems to vilify her further. However, rather than focusing on the emotional and physical blackmail, the beginning of the story seems to focus on her "depravity" which to me, feels to be on the side of kink-shaming. To each their own and far from any of us to judge each other's kinks. If someone has an exhibition streak coupled with multiple partners, including strangers, that is their prerogative and such kinks should not be labeled with derogatory terms. I believe the story would be a much stronger and healthier depiction of BDSM if the author was to have Junji focus on the betrayal of trust rather than judging her kinks. I find it difficult to read as the author seemed determined to depict this girl a certain way without explaining her motivations in a way that dehumanizes her and for me, it was hard to read on to even reach to chapter 4 in order to find out the depth of her emotional abuse which seems to be much more important to highlight early on.

This trend continues with the implication of Junji's research in a later chapter. I applaud the author in showing different sides of the lifestyle, but again, the judgment that Junji shows towards the harder side feels very judgemental to me and anti-sex-positive which is what the lifestyle is all about. I found myself wishing he would take more of a "not for me, but hey, there is something out there that is for me!" kind of attitude rather than an extremely judgemental one. I haven't read later into the story but I am hoping that he learns, in the end, to accept other preferences even if they are not their own. This is especially important for a Dom as a judgment on a sub's kinks may be extremely damaging to their psyche.

BDSM is also a very broad term that encompasses many aspects from the bedroom only, to complete lifestyle, Rather than have the characters discuss BDSM as a thing they practice, it may be better to get into a bit more detailed description as to what specific aspects they practice. Is it sadism/machoism? Is it bondage? Degrees of power dynamics (whether outside or inside the bedroom?) Pet play? Details will help make the story more realistic.

On showing rather than telling. Take out the tags that indicate backstory, etc and consider where flashbacks may be appropriate. The insert of backstories is disruptive to the story flow and can make the reader lose the plotline itself. Consider using more details and take your time in describing movements, emotions, expressions, etc in order to bring the story alive to draw the reader in;

I applaud at some of the dialogue and advice Hanabishi imparts to Junji, later on, to describe what healthy power dynamic relationships should be like. To me, it scratches the surface and I hope the book, later on, delves deeper into what that actually means in practice, especially as much of it is such as emotional honesty is easier said than done.

I'm happy to chat further and have an open dialogue on what good looks like.

PixieStormcrow