YES, MASTER by Sean Michael

Publisher:  Torquere Press Publishers
Published: 03/19/2014  
ISBN:  978-1-61040-668-0
Genre:   Short Stories / BDSM / M/M
Book format:  E-book
Obtained via:    Publisher
Reviewed Helena Stone, helenastone63@gmail.com

Rating: 4

Despite everything I will say in my review below, I’m hard pressed to improve on the official description of this book which really does tell you all you need to know:

“From first timers to hard core lovers, this collection of five BDSM themed short stories by Sean Michael has something for everyone who loves hot m/m action and a great love story.”

‘Yes, Master’ is a collection of five short stories all of which deal with BDSM in some way, shape or form; from barely there D/s (Finding Kasey) to all out possession (Following My Heart) and everything in between. We are treated to a bratty, provocative sub (Playing for Keeps), a dream come true for two men who have been friends for years (The Twelve Kinks of Christmas) as well as a supernatural encounter between a demon and the two men who struck a deal with him (Payday).

All five stories are hot and very descriptive when it comes to the sexual action between the men involved. Yet all five stories at the same time ooze love, commitment as well as fun. I was squirming while reading these stories, found myself smiling at the interactions between the characters and got mildly emotional at the obvious love (either well established, recently discovered or just a possibility).

If I had to pick favourites between these five stories my choice would be ‘The Twelve Kings of Christmas’ – just for the idea behind the story and the sheer delight the characters experience when they discover their mutual attraction -  and ‘Following My Heart’ – for the heady combination of fear and need. And if there was one story that did less for me than the others it was ‘Payday’. Having said that, there was so little to separate these stories when it came to the enjoyment they gave me that I decided not to review and rate them individually – as I have been known to do with collections like this – and instead treat the book as one whole.

I am kind of impressed with these stories. None of them are very long yet all of them managed to give me a clear impression of the characters as well as a good idea of the situation they find themselves in and their feelings. While all of these stories focus on the sexual aspect of the relationships between these men there is never any doubt that the story is about more than just the physical attraction between them. What impressed me most is the fact that while I would have loved to read more about most if not all characters and relationships in this collection I didn’t feel that I had missed out on anything when the story ended. These are self-contained stories with a beginning, middle and end. At no point did I have the feeling that I was missing information or that the story had been rushed. Since these are my pet peeves when it comes to shorter fiction I was very pleasantly surprised.

I read one previous book by Sean Michael and wasn’t as impressed with that book as I was with this collection. I’m so glad I didn’t allow that earlier experience to put me off reading more by this author. I would not have wanted to miss out on this book and look forward to reading more by Sean Michael in the not too distant future.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.