Book Review
Title: Games We Play (One Night Book 1) by Dana Isaly
Genre: Dark, Erotic, Romance
Rating: 5 Stars
Games We Play was an interesting story that was too short because I didn’t want it to end. We are introduced to Jack, who is an anonymous gamer known as The Joker as he is preparing to be interview for a gaming magazine. Quinlan who is conducting the interview has to sign a lot of paperwork including NDA’s before she can even meet Jack but for the moment he lays eyes on her he is struck by how beautiful she is. We learn that alongside streaming Jack also does a lot of NSFW stuff on the side mainly to do with voice kinks as he has a very unique voice. After some routine questions Jack begins to notice how Quinlan responds to some of the sexual things he says and decides that he wants to play a game with her and she surprisingly agrees to this although it is only supposed to be for one night which was Jack’s suggestion not her as he has some major trust issues.
We get some great sex scenes early on and unlike a lot of these erotic novels Games We Play actual has clear communication between Jack and Quinlan throughout which is consistent. Even when Jack begins introducing BDSM element, he makes sure to provide Quin with safewords and he explains everything fully to her before hand so she isn’t surprised or overwhelmed by anything. During this time Jack also puts Quin’s needs well above his own. Even when he has provided her with several orgasms and is desperate for one himself he realises that she isn’t ready for that and holds off although he to rest and eat before even making his needs known to her. Jack also repeatedly gets consent off Quin which is also consistent throughout the novel and really made me fall in love with Jack as a character. During their night together his friends want to meet up at one of the club’s he owns and he asks Quin to go with him which she does and she is the first person he is introducing to his friends. His friends love Quin especially Wes, however, there is an incident at the club that sparks Jack’s possessive streak but his friends make sure to calm him down before letting him near Quin because they don’t want him to scare her and Jack doesn’t either. Quin ankle is twisted by she is otherwise fine but this leads into one of the hottest scene in the book taking place in the office of the club with Jack’s friends and employees still lingering around the club.
I actually liked that Quin was able to reduce Jack to begging on more than one occasion which he himself says he has never done for anyone as they are usually the ones begging him. Jack’s friends can actually see that there is definitely more than one night between them and Jack is also coming to realise this. He takes her home with him where on the way she confesses to trying to commit suicide when she was younger and almost succeeding which she why she does exactly what she wants now rather than trying to be perfect for someone else and this actually gets Jack very emotional. We can clearly see a deeper bond forming between the pair despite them not really knowing each other that well. For a smutty novel this had some pretty wholesome moment that really made you love the characters and want the best for them. After they return to Jack’s place we get some more great scenes, my personal favourites were the sensory deprivation scene and the overstimulation scene. Here Jack realises he wants more of Quin and asks her to date him, although he briefly freaks out because he isn’t used to opening himself up to others she agrees much to his delight. The epilogue was absolutely delightful as we see them together a year into their relationship where Jack encourages her writing and she continues to accept his streaming and NSFW stuff because that is what he enjoys. Watching Jack propose to Quin was beautiful and I can’t wait to see more of them in the future but I wouldn’t be disappointed if the next books followed Jack’s friends instead as I really liked both Wes and Owen. All the dynamics were amazing in this book not just between Jack and Quin, as Quin actually bonds with Jack’s friends easily and naturally and this is very important for him as he has very people in his life that he actually trusts and Quin slotted in perfectly with all of them. Quin even takes Jack’s trust issues in stride although she does have some body confidence issues Jack quickly fixes this with repeated worship of her body throughout. Overall, Games We Play was amazing and I can’t wait to read more from Dana Isaly in the future.
Buy it here:
Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Kindle Edition: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
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