If it weren't for Little Darling, the title of the worst Juné novel so far would probably go to Caged Slave. It had issues from characterization to translation and the overall feel that it gave off was one of a sloppily put together novel.

Tsukasa has been dumped by his lover and he's sitting at a bar in an expensive hotel brooding. I can't blame him because he made the mistake of dating his boss, and not only did his boss ditch him for a wealthy heiress, Tsukasa also loses his position in the company and is demoted.

At the bar, he catches the eyes of a rich man and the man leaves Tsukasa a room number. They have sex all night long and the mysterious man schedules to meet with Tsukasa the same time next week but doesn't reveal his name. Tsukasa quickly falls in love with the stranger over the course of their meetings.

Meanwhile, changes are being made back at Tsukasa's company. The company owner has just created a new position and hires a very famous man to fill that role. Guess who it is. Just take a wild shot.

To start with the minor issues, the dirty talk really needs to step it up a notch. There is a lot of dirty talk (on the mysterious man's part, Tsukasa mostly moans and protests) but it's either clumsily translated or it just really is that bad. The mysterious man (MM) goes on and on about how sensitive Tsukasa is—all the while, Tsukasa is protesting, "No! No!"—and in one instance he forces Tsukasa to say, "Please punish me."

Here you will also find some of the most awful sex scenes ever. At one point, they mention that Tsukasa was oozing so much fluid it was like piss leaking out of a little boy's penis. No words for my reaction at this point.

But the more pressing issues are the way the romance and the characterizations are dealt with. The romance has way too much of a rushed feel to it. Tsukasa falls in love with MM because MM has been the only one so far to make him enjoy anal sex. There it is. That's the reason. MM, on the other hand, isn't smitten because of the sex. He actually likes Tsukasa's personality. I find that so unbelievable because there is not a person with a more boring personality than Tsukasa.

Tsukasa basically has only three emotions: happiness, shame, and confusion. When he's thinking about MM, he's happy, embarrassed by the memories, and confused. When he's having sex, he's ashamed of his reactions, and confused about why he is enjoying anal sex. When MM is confessing to him, he's confused about how that's even possible, but happy at the same time.

His speech mostly consists of:

"Huh?"
"Why?"
"What?"
"Wha...?"
"No..."
"N-no."
"What? No."

It's ridiculous how stupid this guy is. He has to have things spelled out four, five, a million times for him. He also has the worst case of insecurity. He has no confidence and doubts everything about himself and MM, so much so that he believes every little thing that other people say about him.

That isn't even the worst of it. Tsukasa is spineless. People push him around, he doesn't do anything. His ex-boyfriend comes back and screws him over, he just stays still and takes it. That doesn't change towards the end of the novel. There is absolutely zero character development.

I don't want to sound so dismissive, but the main problem with this novel can be boiled down to bad characterization. MM remains too mysterious (and too perfect) and Tsukasa just never develops.

I can't honestly recommend Caged Slave to anyone. ( )

Tsukasa is a "cold beauty" (I think this should be a typical Japanese stereotype, since it's the second time I found it in an yaoi novel...). He is so beautiful that people around him think that he doesn't need to be properly loved but only admired, and when someone dares to reach for him, he finds a totally different guy, a guy who is not so selfish and selfcontrolled as he seems, and also a guy who needs to be cherished and protected, and above all romantically loved. Yes since Tsukasa dreams of the perfect lover and the perfect life they could have together. And instead, he is just dumped by his last lover who wants to marry a rich girl to have an advancement in career.

Tsukasa is mourning in the bar of a posh hotel when he is cruised by an handsome, and apparently, wealthy business man. He is so sad and lonely that, even if he is not is usual behavior, he accepts to follow the man in his room and they spend a night of sex. Another surprise for Tsukas, who, in his previous relationships, has never really appreciated the sexual part of the relationship, always suffered it as a duty to please his partner. And instead this handsome stranger takes care of Tsukasa, and of his body, and brings him to high sexual level he has never reached before.

The morning after Tsukasa is surprised, but pleased, when the man asks him a repeat performance the next week. They start a long relationship, meeting every week at the same hotel and in the same room. Tsukasa is addicted to this man, a man he even doesn't know for name.

The story is pretty simple and there is a twist in the middle that turns it in a classical of the romance genre, the boss and secretary's relationship. It's pretty clear that for Tsukasa is love, since for the first time he has found a not selfish partner, who not only see his beauty exterior, but also sees the man, and his needs. The story obviously is pretty erotic, but not so graphic details of other in the same genre. There is a lot of sex, but I think Tsukasa's character has a right development. Maybe the "handsome stranger" could be a bit more explained, his reasons, his feelings, above all in the second part, when he is also given a real role.