Review: Pain Slut by J.A. Rock

Posted February 21, 2016 by Dale

Blurb:

Honestly, I’m ready to take a step back from the Subs Club. Making the kink world a safer place for subs is the sort of bandwagon I’d have boarded as an idealist in my early twenties, but now I’m a pragmatist in my late twenties. I prefer to focus on adopting and raising a child.

But unexpected factors inevitably derail my plans. Like Drix Seger—attractive and the first genuine sadist I’ve encountered. If I were not in the process of renouncing my masochistic ways and becoming the normal, responsible potential father the adoption agency wants to see, Drix and I might do well together.

But he has a foolish name and belongs to a cult of vampyres, and I am quitting kink. So why does Drix’s infatuation with blood and biting make me so hot I can’t think straight? And why, when he looks at me, does he seem to see something beyond a basket case with a stick up my ass?

Can I start a new phase in my life without leaving part of myself behind? Please send help.

—Miles

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Buy it on Amazon US / Amazon DE / Riptide Publishing / ARe

My Review:

The book starts with Miles planning to leave the BDSM community, so that he can focus on the child he hopes to adopt soon. At the beginning of the story he believes that being kinky, especially a pain slut, and being a father don’t go well together and would somehow make him a bad father. He has come to terms with his decision and thinks it’s the only way, until he meets (Hen)Drix Seger, who is a sadistic vampyre.
Despite Miles wanting to resist Drix he finds himself unable to do so. There’s an instant connection between these two and he just can’t stay away.

I had a hard time rating this one because while it was really interesting to find out more about Miles; his kink is definitely not my kink. And reading about it made me feel really uncomfortable at times. The writing in this one is great (again) so I do (in some way) understand why Miles needs all the pain but it still made me queasy.

That being said there’s more to the scenes than just the pain play. There’s an emotional connection between Miles and Drix right from the beginning and I really enjoyed to see this connection grow and flourish into something more. Not just during the scenes they did but also outside of it.
I don’t think I would have kept reading if there hadn’t been an emotional connection between Miles and Drix.
Just like The Subs Club the sequel Pain Slut is more about the relationships between a) David, Miles, Gould and Kamen and b) the relationship between Drix and Miles. The character development in this one is fantastic (again) and I feel like I got to know a bit more about all of these characters but it never took the focus off of the MC’s.
I especially loved that Drix showed Miles that he didn’t need to abandon one part of his personality so that he could focus on another one.

I think this was the first BDSM-themed book I read where one MC wanted to have a child. Sadly there’s this stigma that apparently you can’t have kids while being into BDSM and I absolutely loved how J.A. Rock handled this situation. This book shows that there is a way to have both.

The book ends before the child comes to live with Miles, so I hope to see more of the little family in the next book.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I’m looking forward to read Manties in a Twist which sounds like it’s a *bit* lighter than this one. 😉