Member Reviews
Published: February 9, 2021
Simon & Schuster
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Cure by Melissa Febos
Melissa Febos is an accomplished author. She spent a year working as a professional dominatrix while in college, and that experience has helped shape her perspective. Her writing is reflective of the reader, and her words contain a depth that will impact her audience in different ways.
”It was in New York City! How could one run out of lesbians in New York City?”
I enjoyed the mysteriousness in this story. No names, no messy details. The added ambiguity made the story more sensual. I enjoyed how the main character reclaimed her desire and wants. She took power and made it her own. All too often, we tend to ignore our wants and needs because society tells us our partners' needs matter more. But that isn’t always true.
This story was sexy without being over the top. There were no ridiculous descriptions of appendages, no animalistic thrusting, and moans of pleasure. Our leading lady discovered that being in control, and getting hers, and refusing to allow her feelings to get involved, was the most satisfactory way to reset herself. So that is what she did. Melissa Febos wrote a dynamic character that we can all identify and learn something from. What you take from this story will depend on what you lack. I love the complexity within that.
Best Friendster Date Ever by Alexander Chee
Alexander Chee is an associate professor of English and a talented author. His works have earned him several accolades in his career. He brings a diverse perspective to everything he creates.
“All I was thinking was, The real bottoms, you don’t have to tie them up.”
I haven’t read much sexual/romance written by a man. So this was a relatively new experience for me. I enjoyed the telling of this story. I genuinely appreciate gay relationships when they are portrayed as usual as straight relationships. That validity is deserved, and I respect the author for giving us that.
This story was gentle in discovering what our narrator wants and his acceptance of that within himself. I enjoyed the build to the act and the subtle dominance displayed.
Trust by Larissa Pham
Larissa Pham is a poet, writer of several genres, and a true artist. She creates visual mediums for her audience.
“She considers her instincts, and then the instincts of all living things, all that animals know without being told.”
I enjoyed the use of imagery in this story. Pham captured the complexity of trust and described the feeling of desire without using simplified words. She told vulnerability without being vulnerable, and she creates two imperfect people who were perfect for each other at the moment.
Safeword by R.O. Kwan
R.O. Kwan is a gifted writer who has earned much praise for her work. She has been recognized across several platforms, and she continues to press the boundaries.
“They watched Secretary, and they tried reading Fifty Shades, but soon dropped it; it was so badly written that it made her laugh.”
First, I LOVE that R.O. Kwon straight called Fifty Shades out for the horrible nonsense. Very subtly, no bashing, but straight fact. That made my entire day.
I liked the learning aspect of this story. Spanking is such a fun, sensual form of play, but it requires some knowledge to avoid injuring the receiver. I love that the couple went to a professional dominatrix together and that she was so vivid in her abilities.
I like that this story exposed the fact that many people have kinky desires but don’t necessarily know how to translate that to their partner and that the partner may not know how to move forward. But having a partner willing to learn is fantastic. My favorite story so far.
Canada by Callum Angus
Callum Angus is a trans writer, editor, and independent scholar. He works to bring understanding and acceptance to the trans community, and through his writing, helps create awareness among people.
“I want to erode her stone by stone, make her fall apart.”
I’m not very familiar with a lot of trans romance. But I enjoyed how the explanation of blending was described with Nina wearing Jay’s clothing.
Oh, Youth by Brandon Taylor
Brandon Taylor is a very accomplished writer. His works have been recognized across several platforms. He continues to transcend the divide and brings knowledge to his readers.
“Someone loved him. Someone loved him. Someone loved him.”
I enjoyed the complexity of this story. However, it’s a little sad. Grisha is just looking to be loved. Wanted. Needed. And all he is finding is temporary.
This story dealt with the complexities of being a thrupple, however. Someone always gets feelings, and someone still gets jealous. And because of that dynamic, someone always gets hurt. I just wanted Grisha to get his happy ending.
Impact Play by Peter Mountford
Peter Mountford has written several short stories and two novels. He is a brilliant mind in a lost world.
“But this secret was a tender, special thing, starting to burn now that it was the only one left between the two of them.”
I wish this had been a complete story, full arc. I liked that Gavin was finally embracing who he is and working on getting past the embarrassment. And I enjoyed Pilar, and I would have loved getting to know her better.
Mirror, Mirror by Vanessa Clark
Vanessa Clark is an award-winning author who shines a spotlight on queer romance. She doesn’t shy away from embracing the unknown, and she brings normalcy to a subject that once may have been considered taboo.
“The fantasy that they craved, needed, obsessed over, was just to see it—they hardly needed to touch, or feel.”
I enjoyed this story. I want to get to know Teena more, find how her history. See how she because the fabulously strong, smart, badass in sparkly heels that she is. Clark is a strong writer with a description gift. I was delighted with this story, and I was sad when it ended.
Reach by Roxane Gay
Roxane Gay is a writer, editor, professor, and social commentator. She had written several works that have earned her accolades. She is a bold, smart, dynamic individual who makes the world a better place with her words.
”I want to know the stories of all her scars, but I’m not sure I’m willing to pay the price for that knowledge.”
I enjoyed the depth of this story. The dynamic that worked for this couple. The level of understanding of not accepting secrets but embracing them. Of realizing that to honestly know someone means opening yourself up to a group of vulnerability that you can’t take back. There is deep respect woven throughout this text, and I appreciate it.
Gospodar by Garth Greenwell
Garth Greenwell is an author, poet, literary critic, and educator. He has several published works and writes criticism for The New Yorker and The Atlantic.
”I felt nothing of what I had thought I might think in standing, and I reclaimed nothing, nothing at all returned.”
Scissors by Kim Fu
Kim Fu is a critically acclaimed and highly regarded writer. She has published works in several notable publications.
”Being seen without seeing.”
I liked the mystery and the embracing of the unknown in this story. You almost feel as though you are naked in front of strangers, blindfolded, experiencing the unknown. Being handled, being poked, and prodded. It’s scary, and it’s intense.
The Lost Performance of the High Priestess of the Temple of Horror by Carmen Maria Machado
Carmen Maria Machado is a critically acclaimed short story author and essayist. Her works have been widely published, and she has been highly awarded for her works.
”She shrieked in pain, her eyes glittering with pleasure.”
There was a level of complexity and depth to this story. I enjoyed the concept. The use of language is interesting. There was a complexity level to this story and the mix of uncertainty and longing that made this an exciting read.
The Voyeurs by Zeyn Joukhadar
Zeyn Joukhadar is exceptionally accomplished. He has many publications and is a leading name within his genres.
“Stop looking at me, stop looking at me, stop looking.”
This story was excellent. The idea of people staring at what they don’t understand, as though trans individuals aren’t human and are a foreign concept. Like it’s okay to gawk and stare as though it’s warranted due to a lack of knowledge or acceptable. The kindness and concern shown by Omar are beautiful, despite his inner turmoil with how he feels people view him. This was a charming story.
Retouch/Switch by Cara Hoffman
Cara Hoffman is an accomplished writer who has published several essays and earned much praise for the work she does.
“Your heart a little coffin that you’ve lined for me with satin.”
This story was kind of confusing. But I think that is the point. To focus on the desire to control and make perfect, but then TBR desire to please and behave.
Emotional Technologies by Chris Kraus
Chris Kraus is a renowned author of empowering material that breaks down the barriers and boosts the female momentum.
“Theatricality implies an embarrassing excess of presence, i.e., of sentiment.”
This story is about claiming one's destiny with an open mind and a lack of fear. The level of understanding. It’s a lovely story.
This anthology is well written, well researched. I enjoyed the positive light being displayed regarding kink and the kink community.
I had a rather mixed reaction to this book. Having just finished another great anthology-style collection of short stories (Criptiques, ed. by Caitlin Wood) I came into this with high expectations, especially considering the interesting, provocative subject and the star-studded cast of featured authors. I found myself, unfortunately, disappointed. Not only did most of these stories somehow make such a fascinating and saucy subject as kink almost pedestrian and boring in how clinical the writing sounded, they also felt more like stories you tell a friend over lunch—not really groundbreaking or riveting, but with just enough buzzwords ("kink" "sex") to keep them from completely tuning out. I expected this to be an insightful, reflective collection of essays on kink itself, but it was definitely more of a collection of mildly pearl-clutching at best stories with kink thrown in as an afterthought. I did enjoy some of these stories, but mostly as short stories about moments in different lives. The highlights for me were the pieces by Peter Mountford and Roxanne Gay. For the majority of the book, I was having to force myself to keep reading because of how uninspired and boring the writing was. I really wanted to like this collection, but sadly, the few gems weren't enough to save the entire book for me.
Kink is a superb read and compilation of recent fiction writing in the BDSM realm. Definitely a page turner and well worth a read!
Human sexuality is fascinating, so I was eager to jump into this story collection. Like many collections it has stories that were excellent and others that were not. Overall I enjoyed most of them. Only one of the stories left a bad taste in my mouth.
I think that it’s important to note that one of the stories makes mention of incest between 2 children. I didn’t anticipate it and it really ruined that story for me. I had to put the book to the side for a bit after, and had to decide to pick it back up again to give the other stories a chance.
If I had been an editor of this collection I would have either not included this particular story or would have requested a content edit (or at least a warning).
I wouldn’t purchase this book for my own collection for that reason and would not recommend it.
I received a free review copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This collection of sharp, diverse, and provocative stories can be best summed up with a quote from Garth Greenwell's piece, "Gospodar." Greenwell writes, "But then there's no fathoming pleasure, the forms it takes or their sources, nothing we can imagine is beyond it; however far beyond the pale of our own desires, for someone it is the intensest desire, the key to the latch of the self, or the promised key, a key that perhaps never turns."
While certainly not for everyone (nearly all these stories contain graphic descriptions of sex), I thoroughly enjoyed this collection edited by R.O. Kwon and Garth Greenwell. I was impressed with the incredibly talented group of writers, some of which are renowned voices like Roxane Gay, Alexander Chee, and Carmen Maria Machado.
My favorite pieces were, "The Cure" by Melissa Febos, a witty and relatable story about old friends and learning to be comfortable with your needs and wants, "Reach" by Roxane Gay, about the complexities of of emotional and physical intimacy in a marriage, "Oh, Youth" by Brandon Taylor, which focused on a young man who makes his living as a companion for an older, wealthy married couple over the supper, and "Safeword" by R.O. Kwon, an unflinching look into a couple exploring BDSM.
Short story collections are hard for me to review most of the time. Some of the stories really held my attention and others were just okay and there were a few that I just didn't finish. I am not sure that this collection as a whole worked well for me, It's not a bad collection as a whole.
I'm not sure how to review this. I read a few of the stories and skimmed the rest. This really wasn't for me, content wise. I'm sure this would be great for some people depending on their taste.
I like some of these stories vastly more than others. Some were absolutely brilliant and others were less to my taste. Overall, I was very happy to have read a collection by so many authors I'm familiar with and such diversity across the board. I especially loved R.O Kwon's piece and Carmen Maria Machado's.
This collection of stories started off with a bang, literally. I loved the variety of LBGTQ+ authors, some of which I know and love such as Roxane Gay and Carmen Maria Machado, but many more that are new to me and I look forward to reading more of their work. I loved that every single story was so different. Some hardly erotic at all, while some were very heavily on the erotic side, some that blew me out of the water and some that to me missed the mark altogether. Overall it's a great assortment of stories that paints a beautiful picture of the wide variety of sexual and emotional relationships people engage in.
There was so much that drew me to this book. This is an all-star cast of LGBTQ+ writers. I also love that this collection is unabashedly discussing aspects of sex (kinks, no less) that are rarely revealed for public consumption.
This short story collection, while focused on BDSM and other kink-based sexual experiences, has a wide range of stories. There is a large representation of LGBTQ+ stories, but there are also stories about women, straight and cis people. There is something for a lot of different groups.
I really liked just how open this book is. It did not tackle the theme in a subtle way. It was not overly sexual and the reader doesn't get bogged down in overly-sexual language or scenes, but it certainly didn't shy away from the topic. I think sorties like this aid in chipping away the societal taboo of discussing sex (especially BDSM or other kinks), which, in all forms, is a healthy aspect of life that warrants a space in our greater culture.
Unfortunately, like any short story collection, there were some stories I didn't like as much. They either dragged or I just missed the point altogether. This didn't make the collection bad, but I rarely read a 5 star short story collection because not all of the stories resonate.
I recommend this to anyone looking for a LGBTQ+ focused short story collection. Thank you to NetGalley and to Simon & Schuster for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
I feel this collection bears the wrong title. The title gives the impression that it is a collection of erotic tales about kinks but most of the stories are so much more. Many of the pieces are short stories that happen to contain a bit of deviant sexual behavior but are about more than that which I enjoyed. I would have stopped reading had it just been lust filled nonsense but I had a feeling there would be some good pieces based on some of the authors included. Most of the stories made me feel uncomfortable, which I had anticipated, but one made me absolutely sick as it was about crossing the boundaries of consent and featured a sexual assault - definitely should have had a trigger warning. Even when engaging in kink there are limits.
All in all, a good collection. My favorites included: “Trust”, “Oh, Youth”, “The Lost Performance of the High Priestess of the Temple of Horror”, and “The Voyeurs”.
Thank you to the authors, editors, Simon & Schuster, and #NetGallery for an eARC of #kinkbook in return for an honest review. Review will be posted on NetGallery and Goodreads.
Would probably rate 2.5 out of 5 stars. I found this collection somewhat inconsistent but I particularly enjoyed the contributions by Alexander Chee, Garth Greenwell, and Carmen Maria Machado. I think the collection would have benefitted from a more unified tone--it seemed to not be able to decide whether it was literary or erotic--and these stories often had a pretty loose definition of kink. Maybe I was expecting weirder stuff? I did appreciate the diversity of the characters and relationships included, though.
This was not the type of book I normally read and I honestly don't remember requesting it from NetGalley. That being said, I think if these types of stories are what you are into, you will enjoy them.
I didn’t know what to expect when I began this book, as I went in completely blind. The stories ranged from educational to humorous to touching, and tackled an array of relationships as well. For me, this book showed that relationships, either sexual or romantic, can take different shapes for different people.
This was certainly a fun book to dive into. While there were some stories and narrators I enjoyed more than others—for example I found the last few stories to be the least interesting to me— overall I felt I gained some knowledge by reading this book!
*Spoilery notes*: The incest in Impact Play quite honestly sickened me. Also, Gospodar should have a trigger warning.
This anthology has kink in all forms, some of it wasn't to my cup of tea. Some was a bit more extreme than I was prepared to read. I liked some of the stories a bit better than others. I would maybe suggest skipping some and reading ones you know you'd like the form of erotic (if that makes sense!)
Overall if you like kink and a variety of erotic stories I would pick this up
KINK is a collection of short stories exploring different facets of sexuality and desire. Some of my recent favorite authors contribute to this collection like Roxane Gay, Brandon Taylor, Alexander Chee, Garth Greenwell, and Carmen Maria Machado. As with any collection, there is a mix of stronger and weaker stories. There are stories about couples new to kink, couples where one partner is into it and the other isn't and trying to navigate that. Stories where kink is a small part of a relationship, versus ones where it overlies the entire relationship. The reader is given stories taking place in the present, and one story set in the Victorian Age (quite the journey, thanks to Machado). A woman who feels unsatisfied starting inviting men over and enjoys teasing them and not allowing them satisfaction. A couple visits a dominatrix for direction (I thoroughly appreciated the hate on 50 SHADES). I had been looking forward to Greenwell's contribution to the book, but it was an instantly recognizable chapter from CLEANNESS. Brandon Taylor's contribution was a highlight, where an older rich couple hire a young man as a third as a summer companion.
Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me an advance reader copy for review.
With a title like “Kink” you may be expecting a collection that is essentially erotica, but the introduction by editors make it clear that this book is stories, less about the sexual acts of kinky people and more about the “complex, psychologically rich act of communication” that is kink. The characters in the stories in this anthology span a wide range of gender and sexuality. No matter if you are cisgendered or trans, straight or queer you will likely find stories that you can relate to.
Like any short story anthology, it’s hard to rate or review of the entire book; some stories resonated with me more than others. Some of my favorites were “The Cure” by Melissa Febos about a lesbian who has sex with a straight man in a way that harkens back to her dominatrix days in college, “Oh, Youth” by Brandon Taylor about a young man who spends his summers as a paid companion, “Scissors” by Kim Fu where trust is key in a scene with a paying audience who get to vicariously experience the visceral fear of sharp objects while the subject is bound and blindfolded, and “Safeword” by R.O. Kwon where a straight couple new to kink consult a dominatrix. Most of the other stories were still enjoyable even if a few did not seem to belong in the collection.
Overall, I’d recommend this anthology to anyone interested in kink and looking for representation of the human aspect as opposed to strictly a work of erotica. My thanks to Netgally and Simon and Schuster for providing me with an ARC of this book.
I loved this Anthology so much it was emotional and real Each author truly Shined I've only read from some of the authors before I'm now Definitely gonna read their past work Carmen Maria Machados story was my favorite🌟 can't wait for this book to come and so other can read it!
This is an excellent collection of short stories. They are well written and include characters and plots that build around an idea. This isn’t porn but rather stories that contain subject matter of a sexual nature.
This book is well written and has good character development I just couldn’t personally get into the story and found it a little bit of a struggle to keep reading. Either way it just left a little lacking for me personally. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.