Velvet Glove IV Paperback – January 5, 2009

Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS."Puppy Love" - 7/10PROS:- I've never read a story that's like this one. Tyg is not just a submissive; he's a submissive who acts like a dog. Literally. He barks and whines and likes to be petted and scratched. He even thinks of his hands as "paws," and Dane praises him by saying, "good dog."- I'm a big fan of hurt/comfort storylines, and this is very much a hurt/comfort story. Poor Tyg wasn't just abandoned and left for dead by his previous master. He was abused for 5 years before the man abandoned him. So Dane has a lot to do to convince Tyg to trust him, but that makes the ending of the story very sweet.CONS:- As much as I appreciated seeing a fairly in-depth view of an unusual aspect of BDSM, I still thought the overall lifestyle of the characters was just a little strange. Sweet, yes, and romantic and interesting and pretty adorable at times. But strange.- I was a little skeptical of how quickly Dane adjusts to the fact that the puppy he's been called on to take care of is actually a human puppy. He's expecting an abused canine, yet he barely hesitates at all when Tyg turns out to be a person."Anything for a Byline"- 9/10PROS:- At first I was a little thrown by the fact that the chapters are all written in first person and that they alternate between Richmond's and Nat's perspectives. However, their narrative voices are very different, so it's evident who's speaking within about 3 words at the beginning of each scene. And by the end of the story, I had grown to really love the narration. Nat's chapters are similar to real-life submissive journals/blogs I've read, and Richmond's chapters allow a much deeper look into his psyche than third-person storytelling would. I got an excellent idea of exactly how devoted he is to his sub.- This story explores various aspects of BDSM, as opposed to focusing on one or two kinks that are the characters' favorites--and which they return to again and again. Nat is a natural submissive, but he's also a complete beginner, so this story shows Richmond and him exploring a lot of different things together. In fact, there's a pretty replete list that they go through, item-by-item, and decide whether they'd like to try each thing.CONS:- Because I was so interested in the characters' journey together, I tried to read the story all in one sitting. I don't think that was the best option, at least for me. It wore me out. Richmond is CONSTANTLY pushing Nat; one scene ends and the next begins (at least in the story--it skips over most of the sleeping and other non-scene aspects of their lives).- The story is written in present tense. I got used to it after just a few pages, but Michael slips up numerous times throughout the story and uses past tense, which makes it seem as though the character is talking about something that happened before, when he's really talking about something happening right now.Overall comments: I think both of these stories are worthwhile reads for those who are interested in hardcore BDSM. "Puppy Love" is one of the most unusual stories I've ever read, and "Anything for a Byline" explores multiple aspects of the BDSM world while diving deep into the characters' attitudes and their feelings toward each other and their relationship.