Simon Sheppard (1)

Free review copy. Short sort-of novella (sex stories connected by a frame story). There’s a lot of sex here, with moments of sharp observation and definitely very character-focused, like slash often is. The difference, aside from not previously knowing these characters, is mainly that a lot of the sex isn’t particularly satisfying, or is good but isn’t as good as the best sex the characters have ever had. For example, one main character used to be a porn star, and one guy he fucks show more wants to do it while watching his old films; meanwhile the ex-porn star thinks that the guy is hot but not exactly what he wants. There are a lot of middle-aged bodies with their own quirks and smells, parts that are soft where they used to be hard and parts that look and/or work great, and various kinks (including a short piss interlude, more discussed than descibed). It did leave me thinking about what it is that we want from sex that isn’t all that good. I guess it’s like meta about desire crossed with a gay porn film. show less

"Roughed Up" is a collection of gay bdsm stories, most of which are written from a sub point of view. Most of it is of reasonably good quality, certainly better than most of the free stories one can find on the internet, making it at least worth spending money on. A few stories are actually original and use striking themes, such as the first, about taking revenge on a dom who stole someone's boyfriend, or a story where a crucifixion theme plays a major role.

Nevertheless the authors often show more can't choose very well between telling a story and making it erotic, so that some of the stories are rather unbalanced. Also, very little attention is paid to particular kinks or variation in the 'types' involved, making it rather vanilla within the context of bdsm fantasy. In a field allowing for so much creativity, the results are a little bland. show less