I have never previously read a book with so many sex scenes which was incredibly dull. There was no fire, no excitement, no nothing; in fact, I found myself skipping forward in the book, over said scenes, to get to the end of the book and finish. The characters were one dimensional and very stereotypical; strong successful woman always in charge, sexy guy determined to change her. Seen one, seen them all.

I'm not certain why it was such a disappointment, but it really didn't fire my imagination in any way. And the end was just foolish. Books should be believable within their own sphere, so to speak, and this one just wasn't.

Top magazine editor Natalie Bowen is successful in business but can't seem to stick with a personal relationship because of her dominating nature. After hearing of a friend's erotic weekend away at The Haven, a sex retreat specialising in S&M, she decides to book a weekend for herself. There she is attracted to one of the tutors, Simon, and suspects that he is attracted her as well. Things progress from there.

If you want a book that is just sex, sex, sex, than this is probably for you. However, the lack of character development and plot left me quite cold. Of course Natalie never seems to have a period or a headache or any such trivial things that plague real people! The odd spelling mistake is also irritating, but at least this title was marginally better than 'Eighty Days Yellow'. ( )

Basically, if an author of Harlequin Teen novels was commissioned to write a book that had scenes of submissive sex play, this is the book you would get.

There are two major problems with this book - first, that the manner in which the Domination/submissive elements are illustrated is inept; and second, that the romantic storyline that was shoe-horned in was painfully condescending.

This book is NOT for anyone who already has a grounding in the tenets of Dom/sub play. The way it is shown in this book is not true to life and will set your teeth on edge. There is no discussion of trust or safe words, or any of the basic rules that any responsible player puts into place.

This book is strictly for people who find the idea a bit hot, but know they wouldn't want anything too heavy. Also, it is for people who need an element of romance to feel OK about kinkier sex - not that this book covers particularly kinky play.

Personally, I felt that having the instructor and student fall in love (is... that a spoiler?) was insulting. It was like saying that women can't enjoy the idea of a good fuck without making sure there was "love" there. Even if that "love" was between two people who hadn't spoken except to get into various sexual positions.

It is also painfully traditional in its gender roles: while both men and women go to this resort to learn to be submissive, the male guests also take a dominant role when paired with the female guests. The female guests, of course, never act dominant. In fact, instructors and others go out of their way to mention how unattractive they find "these kinds of desires in women". Including the 'romantic' lead.

In short, I thought this book was pants. It was quite simply not a hot enough book to make you forget the embarrassingly unbelievable love story or the inconsistently handled Dom/sub play. Not worth the price.

At last, an erotic novel with a convincing plot, peopled by three-dimensional characters that leap from the pages to capture your imagination. You will feel their emotions, tensions and triumphs as Marina takes us further into the maze of sexual self-discovery. Every twist and turn; every unexpected thrill, will have you buzzing and turning the pages for more. Haven of Obedience is an exciting and thought provoking read, leading to a highly charged, powerfully revealing conclusion. A thoroughly enjoyable read ( )