Book Review
Title: Kink Stories Edited by R. O. Kwon
Genre: Romance, Erotica, Anthology
Rating: 3 Stars
The Cure by Melissa Febos was an interesting opening to the anthology as it follows a woman who is struggling with her sex life. While she feels attraction to the women she dates this often leads to rejection and she is looking for something to satisfy her. She ends up calling a male college friend for a hookup and the first time isn’t good for her but the second and third time she puts her needs first and completely ignores him outside of that. While this comes off as cold it highlights the fact that men often treat women this way regardless of their pleasure and seeing the situation reversed was refreshing and strange all at once.
Best Friendster Date Ever by Alexander Chee was an interesting story. It starts out with a man rejecting on his song love as he is currently single and arranging a date through an app. Initially the date doesn’t seem to be going well but that soon changes when the man realised his date is submissive. They end up exploring this together since the man never saw himself as a dominant with his ex because he felt pressured into the role but here it comes organically to him. It is smutty which is what I wanted but it also demonstrates the differences your partner can make in relationships and one time encounters.
Trust by Larissa Pham is a story centred around trust. We follow a newly formed couple as they navigate the anxieties and uncertainties of a new relationship. Due to the man is older and more experienced he notices that the girl is quiet and closed off, even during sex she attempts to steer everything in order to avoid being vulnerable. One evening it all comes to a great with him restraining her until she finally lets go and trusts him with her heart as well as her body even though the relationship didn’t last for long in the end it left an impression on the girl for years.
Safeword by R. O. Kwon if one of the first stories to feature a married couple, Paul and Jihyun. Jihyun has a kink for pain and she is a submissive which is something she has kept hidden due to her religious upbringing. Her husband, Paul, wanted to please his wife ends up booking a session with a dominatrix in order to learn how to safely give Jihyun what she needs. At the beginning of the session both are nervous but Jihyun eventually falls into her role as submissive under Paul and Ava. However, we can see throughout the story that BDSM especially this kind is something Paul isn’t comfortable with and I don’t think it is because of his religious upbringing but because he finds no pleasure in hurting his wife even though she does. This is something common in relationships where one partner bends for the other even though they find no enjoyment in the act itself because it pleases the other and gives them what they need.
Canada by Callum Angus was an interesting one as it follows a couple, Nina and her trans partner, Jay. What makes this interesting is the setting as it almost seems like the world is ending and we see Nina is sad about it while Jay is happy that the plants and animals that couldn’t normally thrive finally are and it was a surprising metaphor.
Oh, Youth by Brandon Taylor was actually one of my favourite so far. It follows Grisha who acts as a companion for older couples to bring the spark back into their marriages and he is currently spending the summer with Enid and Victor. At a dinner party Grisha reflects on his life from losing his first love to the first couple who took interest in him to where he is now. During the dinner out becomes clear that there is more than physical attraction between Victor and Grisha even though Grisha believes himself to be unlovable. In the end Enid asks him to leave early because she knows her husband is in love with him any wants him to stay forget allowing the dynamic of their relationship without realising it is going to change anyway.
Impact Play by Peter Mountford was a story that looked at several different things, some more disturbing than others. We follow Gavin and his girlfriend, Pilar who are both extremely kinky but their relationship is deeper than that as they began dating while they were both married. However, Pilar’s husband knew about Gavin while Gavin’s wife didn’t. Eventually both got divorced and got together as a couple as well as dominant and submissive. Gavin wants them to move in together and discussed it with his cousin Betsy who they are going to see. One thing Gavin hasn’t told Pilar throughout their relationship is that when they were young he and Betsy explored sexually together and it impacted his sexual tastes as he matured but we can’t ignore the physical similarities between Pilar and Betsy which left a sour taste in the mouth afterwards.
Mirror, Mirror by Vanessa Clark was an amazing and insightful story. It follows Teena, a transgender export as she meets with a new client who is a size queen. Immediately there is so much passion and tension between the pair and even after everything is said and done this connection remains. It felt really hopeful unlike some of the stories in this collection and I really enjoyed it.
Reach by Roxane Gay showed the darker side to kink as well follow Annie and Sasha. Sasha seems to have a dark past, her body covering in scars that she won’t discuss even with her partner. Sasha wants to be hurt by Annie in dark ways and Annie does their best to give her what she needs. Despite this it is clear to see there are some unhealthy coping mechanisms being used and the communication between the couple is very limited but still a decent story overall.
Gospodar by Garth Greenwell ended up being a really dark that highlighted the realities of online dating especially in a kink setting. The protagonist seems to have recently gotten out of a relationship with R and is seeking a master to play with, giving them what they didn’t have with R. They end up finding one online and have their first meeting in person with him and while neither are exactly like their online images, the protagonist is excited by the fact they have found someone to dominant them in the way they want. However, despite most of the meeting going well and being pleasurable in a sense for both it soon takes a dark turn. The man wants to penetrate them without a condom which is something they don’t want and he tries to force it ending with him injuring the submissive before throwing them out. However, it doesn’t stop him from repeatedly trying to injure the submissive for stopping the encounter and we see the fear and panic come out afterwards. This is an all to real fate that many encounter because they don’t know the people they are meeting and the people they are meeting might not be well versed in the etiquette of these kinds of relationships.
Scissors by Kim Fu was a great story really going into the mindset and preparation that goes into a kink scene. Dee and El perform in a kink club for audiences of people, during these scenes Dee is often blindfolded and touched and we see how El uses this sensory deprivation to her advantage. As Dee is unaware of whether it is El touching her or members of the audience until her blindfold is removed but during this time she puts her truth in El to keep her safe and secure which El does every single time. While this might seem a little dark at first it really highlights the nature of these relationships, how much trust and effort needs to go into making them working in the way El and Dee’s relationship does and how the dominant in the relationship is always thinking about the submissive wellbeing and it was nice to see.
The Lost Performance of the High Priestess of the Temple of Horror by Carmen Maria Machado was a story I was looking forward to as I had read other short stories by the author and really enjoyed them. I didn’t know what to make of this story, it was dark and beautifully written but the “plot” was a little confusing. We are introduced to Aisha, who sees Maxa perform in a play where she dies in various graphic ways and becomes obsessed with her. Maxa only refers to Aisha as “Bess” especially after her mother dies and she moves into the theatre with Maxa. Maxa and Bess have a weird relationship that jumps between lovers and caretakers especially since Maxa has a lover in Marcel. Eventually, things go downhill with Maxa and both start their own lives elsewhere, while Aisha finds what she was looking for it seems that Maxa never did but Aisha doesn’t really seem to care anymore which is where it felt a little strange.
The Voyeurs by Zeyn Joukhadar follows Belen and Omar, a trans couple and the first to feature children as Omar has a son, Jordan from their previous marriage. The entire story follows their relationship as both are transitioning and how they support each other through the hard times especially when it comes to light that they have a peeping Tom. For a time they don’t think anything of it until they learn that the identity of the person watching them is their elderly, bigoted neighbour. It was an insightful and slightly funny story when it comes to the ending.
Retouch/Switch by Cara Hoffman was another one that confused me slightly, I wasn’t sure if the male and female characters within the story are separate people or two sides of the same person as it isn’t made clear. This story has the theme of separation and being unable to get rid of someone or a part of yourself. It also had an interesting look on the beauty industry and beauty standards in the modern age which I greatly appreciated.
Emotional Technologies by Chris Kraus is the final story in this collection, follows an unnamed female and her dominant, Jeigh but it is far more than the exploring of a new kinky relationship. The story itself looking at romance culture, dating culture and obviously the culture around BDSM and why these relationship work better in some cases than traditional relationships and it seems to be because kinky relationship are based on open and honest communication and active listening to your partner rather than doing whatever you can to please them. In BDSM you play a role which you can step outside of at any time and this appeals to more people than many care to admit.
Overall, the collection was a weird fusion of dark, haunting and beautiful at times. My favourite stories would have to be Best Friendster Date Ever by Alexander Chee and Oh, Youth by Brandon Taylor. These stories really encapsulated the different elements and aspects of BDSM as well as the different people that engage in these kinds of relationships and the reasoning behind their decisions. Despite that this collection really didn’t live up to my expectations, while I appreciated the open honesty about BDSM and the diverse characters, there wasn’t a lot of substance in many of the stories and the ones that were great didn’t redeem the collection for me personally.
Buy it here:
Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Kindle Edition: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
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