My heart did a little bounce yesterday. Annie Oakfield sent me an ARC of Caught, Part 2 of her erotic series, The Bucket List. I loved Part 1, and have been looking forward to Part 2.
Once again Amber is up to mischief, luring her BFF and sometimes lover, Lucy, to the bedroom section of a department store just as the store is closing. Shy Lucy has no inkling of what lies in store (pun intended) as Amber convinces her that it’s quite all right to have a quiet kiss and a cuddle in the biggest, softest bed. No one is around to stop them…
Part 2 is as well written as Part 1. The author’s dedication to research really pays off in creating a story that’s erotic while also feeling real. However, Caught treads a treacherous path along the edge of consent, and that makes it much harder to sustain both the erotic and the real.
Lucy’s emotional reactions are believable, keeping the story real… but how realistic is it that she is so submissive and sexually responsive when her consensual boundaries are being pushed hard?
Reality, consent and the erotic make a volatile mixture, and readers will react in different ways. Caught is certainly enjoyable and erotic in places, but towards the end I was too uncomfortable (angry and frustrated with the characters) to find it erotic.
A few hours’ sleep later…
I’m still angry – but I think I understand better why I’m angry.
If I were to decide I didn’t want sex with a particular person, then I wouldn’t want that person intruding in any way on the sex I was having (if any). And not just physically – I wouldn’t want to feel caught up in their D/s headspace.
In conclusion…
Annie Oakfield continues to be one of my favourite erotic authors and I will certainly read future books in The Bucket List series. However, Caught explores a number of themes of dubious consent, and crosses my limits.
★★★☆☆
Links
Francis James Franklin (Alina Meridon) 
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