What does it mean to be cruel to be kind, or for that matter to be kind to be cruel? Whatever it is, it's definitely an uncharted landscape, which Stephanie Vaughan reveals like a slow striptease--with style. Her debut book Dead Man's Party introduced the Dominant character Rick and his partner Catherine in a dreamy merging of contemporary and ghost story. Cruel to be Kind, the tale of Rick's brother Steve Eriksson leaves behind the paranormal but keeps the sensually yearning quality explored so well in the first book. In Dead Man's Party, the man is the Dom and the woman is submissive; Cruel to be Kind reverses the roles. It's a point of view shift that provides very interesting territory.

This is the story of a Dominant woman and a man who doesn't know he's submissive--yet. It begins in a bar/restaurant, with the lonely Domme Megan about to quit the city because she just can not find him, Mr Right, the him of her dreams--then she sees Steve and he is perfect eye candy. He makes an attempt to make her acquaintance. And when she (gratefully) realizes that he isn't going to give up, she lays it on the line for him as she explains--no--directs him in a little scene that--as Vaughan so aptly puts it "rocks his world." It's a tease of an introduction to what it would be like for him to be her submissive. It's also a tease of an invitation to read the book, and it is very effective on both counts.

What is so strong about this book is how well Vaughan gets into the heads of both of her point of view characters. She explores the issue of trust and wise practices of those in the lifestyle. She draws the sexual tennis match between them, not only the back and forth external exchanges, but even more so, she delves into their psyches to reveal their inner feelings, actions, reactions, and motivations with great sensitivity. Add to this the layers of complexities brought on by the nature of the D/s relationship--especially with a newly submissive man--and you have some idea of the scope of this fascinating read. I would surely recommend this to anyone interested in the BDSM genre, or for anyone who thinks they might be interested in exploring the power exchange.

Reviewed By Maîtresse
© Jan 2005