For the past couple years Laurel’s been coasting, hiding in the backseat while her life drifts off course. Then one summer afternoon a tall, built bruiser named Flynn strides in and steers her straight into an infatuation she never saw coming.
Flynn introduces Laurel to things she’s never imagined–to the violent but exciting realm of the underground boxing circuit, to rough sex and even rougher role-playing, and to an attraction she craves even as it intimidates her. As Flynn invites her deeper into his world and his life, Lauren has to make a choice: let fear keep her holed up where it’s safe, or take a chance and fight for the man who makes her feel more alive than she’d dreamed possible.
This is a novel about fear–fear of pain and power, fear of the unknown, and fear of life itself. It is also a story about two people who are locked into their own worlds, each in their own way, seeking to brave the challenges and trying to find a way forward. Laurel is a well-educated woman with a college degree who is working in a dead-end job, fearful of the pressure and seemingly willing to watch life march right past her. Yet when she encounters a man who was willing to step into a potentially bad situation, she does something that even surprises her: she follows him to a sandwich shop and gets herself invited to be a spectator at an underground boxing match–raw, rough, bloody, brutal, and hidden deep in the basement of a bar. But that is only the beginning: she also encounters the edgy and mysterious world of really rough sex and she finds herself invited to a session, again as a spectator, between Flynn and a girl who just likes it rough (even to the point of role-playing rape) and who finds Flynn willing to take the edge off his own adrenaline high. So begins the tentative and exploratory encounters between Laurel and Flynn.
Cara McKenna writes stories that highlight personal encounters that are truly out of the ordinary. I also think she writes stories that force readers to consider their own inner demons–fear, pressure, stress-induced reactions rather than responses that are considered and mature. This is a very edgy story that does indeed open up the world of the hidden, but just as Flynn’s need is for violence to calm his inner beasts, so Laurel’s world of fear and hidden living is explored as well. It seems to me that Flynn recognizes something in Laurel that is authentic and good, while realizing that even as she explores his boxing world and his penchant for rough sex and sexual role-playing, she is really trying to find her own courage to be herself at her best. I found Flynn to be fascinating because he, like other McKenna characters, has those hard planes and edges that usually offend many and cause fearful souls to back away. Yet within that personality lives a man who prizes goodness and begins to allow gentleness to peak out from his inner being because Laurel has accepted his harsh ways and edges. He is incredibly honest in his open admission of who he is and of his dark inner appetites. It is to this honesty I think Laurel is most drawn. Is it possible for her to face herself that way?
I have always valued writing that takes the reader away from the comfort zone. And I find McKenna’s characters fascinating and engaging–a combination of mystery and wonder, of harsh reality and the vulnerabile, of anger and forgiveness. Were I to meet Flynn out of the blue as did Laurel, I’m not sure I would have pursued him as she did. He was pretty cut and dried with her, actually kind of brutal. Yet I would have missed out on getting to know a man who was just as needy in his own way as Laurel, just as hungry for a sense of acceptance and encouragement as she, really authentic in his self-appraisal and who had finally come to a place where he had no patience or acceptance for those who lived in the world of inner denial.
This is a novella and as such is not a major time investment to read. Yet is has that mark upon it which comes from the expertise of a very good word-smith and a writer who is not afraid to explore the darker side of the human spirt and its needs. There are readers who will not like these characters. This story is not for the faint of heart. There are also those of us who come away from this story realizing that it is not really about the pain and brutality and possible abuse inherent in any of the activities. Rather these were a vehicle through which these two people gained a greater understanding of themselves and the courage to seek greater goals for their lives, possibly together.
I give this novella a rating of 4.25 out of 5.
You can read more from Judith at Dr. J’s Book Place.
This book is available from Ellora’s Cave. You can buy it here in e-format.
Thanks for such a thoughtful review, Judith! I’ve been surprised (and delighted) by how well-received this story has been…it’s got such a gnarly kink at its center, I had no idea what sort of response to expect. So far, I couldn’t be happier with the feedback I’ve gotten from readers.
All the best,
Cara