Senth is half human half feline Kin, the only signs of his feline father his cat eyes and carnivorous teeth. His only relative in the world is Khyffen, a fully human young man. The brothers live in a world of legal servitude. Senth is owned by a black market boss Lucas Saint-Cyr, known as The Harbinger, who had plucked him from an orphanage for his talent at thieving. Lucas regularly feeds Senth a drug that keeps his libido down and enables his master to hypnotize him; and Khyffen's master beats him and forces him into sexual slavery. The two young men are helpless in their servitude, and manipulated by ruthless people who exploit their talents if not their humanity.

In this world, there are Betters, enhanced humans with pheromones that make them addictive sexual partners. One of these betters, NarrAy, contracts The Harbinger for Senth to do a job. Senth, a virgin, is forced into close quarters with this sexually addicting woman, but under the influence of a heavy dosage of the drug, Shackle, he is able to resist her. He is hired to break into a warehouse and recover a locket of hers that holds the key to a government secret; but that warehouse is under surveillance. They are caught, but then freed by agents of the rebellion.

Then NarrAy's world widens as the bigger rebellion steps into the picture. The recovered locket turns out to be still only a step in what is needed. Something else has to be recovered from the warehouse. The Harbinger keeps a promise to Senth and uses his influence to free Khyffen from sexual slavery, then Saint-Cyr sends Khyffen to monitor his brother with the Better. He is to dose his brother with the hated drug, suppress his libido, and then stay with him until the job is done. Senth wants more of the Better, and more of his life, and no more Shackle. He wants NarrAy, even though he owes two years of obeisance. He swears to take the consequences of his actions and sends Khyffen back with the message.

Will Khyffen stay free? Will Senth and NarrAy ever be together? Will the resistance win? And who really is the Harbinger, beneath his all black contact lenses?

Kayelle Allen has built a complex world of rebellion against the machine of a menacing and cruel caste system based on species and rank. There is a whole sense of a developed street language, and not just one dark culture of the street, but also an elite culture, and a military protocol developed by the androgynous leader of the resistance. AT THE MERCY OF HER PLEASURE is an ambitious rendering of a world in turmoil with colorful characters struggling to achieve lives of autonomy. What a surprise to find such a multifaceted plot so intricately developed. A must read for fans of Romantic Science Fiction and Speculative Fiction .

Maîtresse (c)2004