"Lyrically written exploration of the psychological side of bdsm"

When two men are found shot after being bound to the footboard of their beds, the Tampa police find that the only link between the two is membership in a very expensive kink club called The Zone -- and the fact that their killer was probably a woman. Both men were submissives. Detective Mac Nighthorse, himself active in the fetish community, comes out of the oubliette (that's the place below a dungeon where you put prisoners you want to forget exist, sorta the kinky equivalent of a closet for gays) and explains to his boss why he's the perfect person to go undercover in search of the Mistress who has turned to murder. Cruising the club, he runs into a young Mistress on her own for the first time--and something about her leaves him shaken. All his life he's been searching for the one woman who could claim him body, heart and soul, and Violet just might be it.

In Mac, Violet may have found the man who will be husband, slave, lover. But Mac isn't the type to admit his needs, and part of the challenge is forcing him to admit that he does have limits and that his heart has been closed to all the Mistresses who've played with him. Finding the key which will unlock his closed heart is the task Violet sets for herself. It may well be the greatest challenge the beautiful Mistress has ever had to surmount.

And while they are falling in love, the death toll mounts.

I adored this book. It works on all levels: as a thriller, as a love story, as kinky erotica, as a psychological study. Mac is a devastatingly sexy man, tough and tender both. Violet, the pixie who can wield a whip and cradle a man in her arms with equal ease, is wonderfully believable. These aren't stereotypes like the characters in the Beauty Trilogy or Story of O. These are REAL people, with jobs, hobbies, families, pets and interests other than kinky sex. What they are searching for is a complete partnership: spouse, friend, lover, mistress/slave. Real life sometimes gets in the way of their love story, just as it does for vanilla people, something you never seem to see in erotica. Read this book for psychological complexity, realistic treatment of a forbidden topic, and depth of characterization, all rendered in fluid, sensuous prose. You seldom find erotica with this level of richness, nor one which understands that the real drive behind D/s is a soul-deep need to know and be known completely by one other person. If you are looking for an erotic novel that will move you emotionally as well as turn you on, buy this book. But be warned. Some of the scenes are very graphic and on the extreme side. Mac prides himself on having no limits, on being able to take whatever a mistress can dish out, and it's Violet's job to break down those barriers, with actions that are flat-out edge play for most of us. Some of the methods she used are harsh (and Mac has the option of using his safeword at any time), but the end result is a man who can admit to his limits and open his heart to the woman he chooses to call Mistress.

Sensuality Rating: extreme bdsm, including bondage, flogging, anal sex, gay male sex.

Reviewed by Gillian Fitzgerald
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted April 18, 2004

Summary

Mackenzie "Mac" Nighthorse is a highly respected homicide detective and a career cop. There isn't a dangerous situation that can back him down.

However, the personal becomes uncomfortably entangled in the professional when he goes undercover in a high class BDSM club as a male submissive to find a Dominatrix who is winning the trust and then murdering her chosen partners.

When his path crosses Violet Siemanski's, he realizes he's found a Mistress willing to be his ally in finding the murderess. But Violet is also going to shatter Mac's shields and make him question who he is and what he wants, a challenge more disturbing than any case he's ever worked.