Review: Only Human

Only Human by Candace Blevins

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Buy this book NOW! I've already read this book three times and I love it. This new series from talented BDSM writer Ms. Blevins is a winner. This is the story which Safeword Storm Clouds should have been. In this new series, there are character crossovers between the Safeword world. Let's see if you can find them as quickly as I could. And let's see if you recognize Kirsten.

In this story, Kirsten is a human. That is all she is to her knowledge. She does have a special skill to help hunt supernaturals. She's a bit like Buffy the Vampire Slayer but a lot more mature and way kinkier. Her day job is as a therapist (every character must have a flaw). Kirsten leads a pretty happy life with a good part time boss, Aaron Drake who is a Dragon. She is a single mother by choice who adopted a Chinese orphan from China. And she's able to shoot lasers out of her hands to kill demons. What's not to like about her?

Did I mention the BDSM? Kirsten is a sexual submissive. She's a kick ass martial artist and independent woman during the day and sexy submissive at night to a dominant male. For the past years, she's been training with a Dominant who's taken almost all of her limits and removed them. This is all done in an amazing way. I'm melting in a puddle of goo just reading about how Kirsten is trained even though I'm a bit afraid.

This book could be cookie cutter trope with alpha dominant males and a kick ass heroine. Ms. Blevins takes a much beloved trope and creates a game changer. This story carries her brand of super nova hawt BDSM as well as well developed characters. For those who loved the early Anita Blake books by Laurell K. Hamilton, this is the series you were waiting for. This is better written, better sex with no penetration, better characters and no narcissistic main characters!

From a world building perspective, it's just unfolding. I can't wait to read more about it. It is familiar to many who read paranormal romance and urban fantasy. What Ms. Blevins does is blend it with some mythological figures which may bring a smile to many readers face.

I love the characters in this story. What I like is that they are not infallible. They make mistakes and own up to them. There are several hot dominant males in this story. They kept me at a constant humming erotic haze and I fantasized about submitting to them. As each alpha male Dominant appears, I respond the same way as Kirsten - panting with desire and doing my best to stay calm. Ms. Blevins doesn't even have any intercourse in this story until the very end and yet this book is erotically explosive because she is able to capture the D/s dynamic so well. For those who are D/s lovers, this book will rock you. Each of the dominants make me want to kneel down and whimper for just a taste of their dominance.

The BDSM in this story is amazing and I could go on and on about it. It's best experienced. Suffice to stay, Ms. Blevins does tone down the SM and ups the D/s. Her love of contracts does come into play just a little bit in this story. The descriptions of the scenes are so vivid it is easy to slip into a sexual yearning whilst witnessing Kirsten submitting. Even the non-erotic parts are still charged with a sexual tension.

Lastly, I must note the Chinese part to this story. It is very clear to me Ms. Blevins did her research into China and probably has visited China. The two secondary characters in here which are Chinese are very accurate and makes me happy. They aren't some white character with a Chinese name. Ms. Blevins is able to translate the nuances of being Chinese for these two characters and I love her for it. I can't wait to read the next book in this series. This urban fantasy is highly recommended to kinky readers who love mentally stable heroines who are strong, sexy and still be sexually submissive.

*arc provided by the author*

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