ARC: Doll Parts – Cara Dee Book Review (The Game #4) + Excerpt

Synopsis:

Get ready for a funhouse experience that doesn’t belong in an amusement park. But clowns and balloons don’t turn this scorching hot BDSM romance into a wild ride. That’s all Noa, Cam, Lucian, and KC.

I have the best boyfriend in the whole world, but there’s one thing I won’t tell him. It’s that I don’t believe in absolute happiness anymore. Not with the cards we’ve been dealt. I mean, come on! Why do we fall for people who don’t want us back? While he’s been pining after Lucian, one of the Masters in his kink community, I’m the lovesick monster-puppy Little who can’t forget my former stepdad KC. Or the kinky porn I once found on his computer…but that’s beside the point!

It’s complicated, to be honest. I try not to think about it. I have Cameron, and I love him so damn much. Why can’t we try to make it on our own? Why does he want us to find a Top that’s just ours? It won’t work. Our stupid hearts refuse to move on.

What’s even stupider is that Cameron insists we seek out a Dom for our relationship in the very kink community where we can find both KC and Lucian.

Ohhh crap. I think he’s got a plan.

The Game Series is a BDSM series where romance meets the reality of kink. Sometimes we fall for someone we don’t match with, sometimes vanilla business gets in the way of kinky pleasure, and sometimes we have to compromise and push ourselves to overcome trauma and insecurities. No matter what, two things are certain. This is not a perfect world, and life never turns out the way you planned.

The Game Series | Book 4 | Standalone | D/s | Daddy/lb | Fear play | Objectification

Available in Kindle Unlimited: https://readerlinks.com/l/2311033

Catch up with the series here: https://readerlinks.com/l/1581265/55

Review:

I’ve enjoyed all of the books in this series so far so I was excited to hear about the release of Doll Parts!

I’m fairly familiar with Cara Dee’s books and I know they tend to be unique, sexy and also very cute. While I have really enjoyed the other stories in this series, I have to say that Doll Parts wasn’t as big of a hit for me as the others were. Nevertheless, it was enjoyable and I’m certainly interested in reading more in this series!

Doll Parts was hot as hell but I wanted more from the romance!

First of all, I liked the storyline. It seemed like it would make for an exciting story with that bit of a taboo element tossed in and some second chance romance and it definitely was exciting but it fell short in the development. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any connection with the characters or feel a genuine connection between them.

Out of the four characters, Noa was only slightly more developed than all the others in my opinion but that left me wanting to know more about Cam, Lucian and KC. When you’re writing a book where the relationship has several people, you want to really take the time to flesh each and every one of them out so that the reader can get a sense of who they are and build a connection with them but that part seemed to be glossed over because I felt like I missed out on a lot. It was kind of taken for granted that the history between KC & Noa and Lucian & Cam would speak for themselves and tell us everything we needed to know about the guys and their relationship but that didn’t work for me. As a result, I never was able to full connect with them.

I also felt like the romance was a little hard to buy into. I could understand the attraction between them and affection/friendship but love felt like a bit of a stretch. Things moved really quickly and I just never felt like they took the time to fall for one another, rather it seemed like everyone already loved each other in an insta-love kind of way and nothing actually evolved besides them officially getting together. I don’t know how else to explain it, not enough happened. It all just kind of blended together for me.

My other thing is with the relationship between the four of them. I never quite felt like it was an MMMM romance, it felt more like a bunch of couples. I don’t think enough time was spent developing the relationship between KC & Cam, KC & Lucian and Lucian & Noa. As a whole, I was just a little disappointed with the characters and their romance.

I did however like the lightheartedness of the story and the steam which was really well done of course. It wasn’t a bad book by any means, it just wasn’t as interesting as I was expecting it to be. Honestly, at this point I’m noticing that the books in this series are kind of blending into one another so that might be my problem. They all just seem too similar and follow a similar pattern.

Steamy and sweet Doll Parts is a fun and quick read but it just didn’t quite meet my expectations.

Overall, I had a nice time reading this book and it was fun to read the cute and sassy banter but I was little disappointed that I didn’t love it. In the end, it ended up being an OK read but not much more than that. It needed a lot more character and relationship development for me to have fallen head over heals with the story but I do think it’ll be a hit for many readers. I am giving Doll Parts 3.75 stars would recommend it to fans of MMMM romance with BDSM elements.

Excerpt

I couldn’t go up there, could I?
I squinted for the sun and peered up at the pale-green–painted trendy restaurant, all three stories of it, including the rooftop terrace. It was one of those restaurants that used to be an apartment building, so you had a bunch of smaller dining areas inside.
I chewed on the inside of my cheek and wondered how the hell I hadn’t connected the dots sooner.
Fuck, it was hot. I ran a hand through my hair and looked around me. The restaurant was right on the corner of a busy intersection, and the sleepy locals on their way to brunch were sharing the sidewalk with tourists.
Maybe I should text him and call it off…
“Excuse me, are you going to the munch?”
I cocked my head to the guy to my left. He was about my age, I estimated. “What if I didn’t know what a munch was?”
He grinned, and it was hot. Hot and cute. “I would’ve said never mind and hightailed it out of here,” he replied. “But I’ve been around long enough to spot someone too nervous to join an event.”
Oh. I wasn’t nervous to join an event. My very first munch, I’d been the first to arrive.
I scratched my head. “I’m stalling because I’m pretty sure I’m barging into someone else’s territory,” I admitted. “My mom’s ex-husband is kinky too.”
The guy made a yikes-face, and I felt the need to elaborate.
“I check his Instagram sometimes, and if he posts four pictures every month, one is from this place,” I explained. “Usually with a caption like ‘Luke is teaching me to post foodporn, whatever that is’ and ‘Macklin’s eggs Benedict are a bit of a religious experience.’”
I could tell I’d mentioned names the guy recognized. I was right. This was the munch of KC’s kink community. Motherfucker. I’d seen eight pictures from this place on KC’s dusty Instagram—or parts of the place. Mostly from the rooftop terrace. Maybe that was where they hosted the munch.
“You know them, don’t you?” I pressed.
The guy smiled uncertainly and shrugged slightly. “We take integrity seriously, but…”
Yeah.
“Who’s your mother’s ex-husband?”
“KC Hayles.”
He nodded once. He’d heard that name too. Then he eyed someone else, or two someones, coming up the sidewalk. They were twins. Hot-as-shit set of twins in their forties.
One of them smirked upon seeing the guy I’d been talking to. “You hidin’, Cameron?”
I observed the guy’s reaction. Cameron. A crooked grin full of mischief lit up his face. He was really fucking cute, and I didn’t usually feel attraction toward men my age. He was a bit taller than me but not much. Blue eyes.
“Does that sound like something I would do, Sir?” Cameron countered.
Definitely a submissive.
One of the twins chuckled and ruffled Cameron’s shaggy, dirty-blond hair. “See you upstairs, boy.” He spared me the quickest of glances, lifted his brow a little, maybe in curiosity, before he and his brother took the steps up to the restaurant.
Cameron turned back to me. “It’s possible you’ve stumbled upon your stepdad’s community.”
I figured. “I’ll just reschedule with the guy I was gonna meet. Thanks for letting me know.”
It wasn’t too important I met him today anyway. It was only a bite to eat to see if I was compatible to play with him and his boyfriend.
Cameron cleared his throat. “Hey, wait. If you know KC… Does that mean you know Lucian too?”
That would be a stretch. “I’ve met him a few times, sure. I wouldn’t say I know him, though.” I’d had my suspicions about Lucian—that he was kinky too. It wasn’t a surprise whatsoever to have it confirmed. He was big-time Master material. “Why? Are you together or something?”
Cameron snorted. “I wish. No, he’s with some dude who’s manipulating him like fucking whoa, and Lucian won’t see it.”
I frowned. That didn’t compute with my impression of Lucian.
“Anyway,” Cameron went on. “Here’s a crazy idea. You wanna get out of here and grab a burger or something? Your plan fell through, and I can think of better things to do than watch Lucian and his little troll.”
I stood straighter instantly. This guy wanted to hang out? Fuck yes! I could use a new friend.
“Absolutely,” I said, sticking out my hand. “I’m Noa.”
Cameron smiled, visibly relieved. “Cameron.”

About Cara

I’m often awkwardly silent or, if the topic interests me, a chronic rambler. In other words, I can discuss writing forever and ever. Fiction, in particular. The love story—while a huge draw and constantly present—is secondary for me, because there’s so much more to writing romance fiction than just making two (or more) people fall in love and have hot sex.
There’s a world to build, characters to develop, interests to create, and a topic or two to research thoroughly.
Every book is a challenge for me, an opportunity to learn something new, and a puzzle to piece together. I want my characters to come to life, and the only way I know to do that is to give them substance—passions, history, goals, quirks, and strong opinions—and to let them evolve.
I want my men and women to be relatable. That means allowing room for everyday problems and, for lack of a better word, flaws. My characters will never be perfect.
Wait…this was supposed to be about me, not my writing.
I’m a writey person who loves to write. Always wanderlusting, twitterpating, kinking, cooking, baking, and geeking. There’s time for hockey and family, too. But mostly, I just love to write.

Find Cara on social media here: https://www.caradeewrites.com/cdwlandingpage

Here are my reviews of the previous books in this series!

Top Priority

Their Boy

Breathless

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Their Boy – Cara Dee Book Review (The Game #2)

Blurb

Left all alone in the world—and in a very big house—after the loss of his parents, Kit Damien has struggled to find his place in society and in the kink community he longs to be a more active part of.

Daddy Doms Colt and Lucas have been a happy, committed couple for eight years. But two Tops need a bottom, and their quest for a Little to make their lives complete has led them to Kit’s empty doorstep.

But just as with his physical wounds, Kit’s emotional scars won’t heal overnight. Colt and Lucas must challenge him at every turn to force him to open up and let them in, to let them use their own individual methods to make him whole again. Together, the three will embark on a journey to learn about true love, growing up, the importance of sprinkles, and the rules of The Game that can make them all winners.

Review

I loved Top Priority so I was extremely excited to read Their Boy!

I’ve never read a book with a kink quite like this. Since I am new to it and didn’t know what to expect, I can say that, personally, I think the author did a good job of introducing and developing the kink. Although I’ll admit, some thinks made me a little uncomfortable and made me a little hesitant, it was, as a whole, a good read!

I was very into this book for most of it, there were some moments that were slower but it ended up being pretty great!

I really liked Colt and Lucas in Top Priority but, in this book, we see them in a completely different way. Here they are in their roles as Daddies to a Little and honestly, I couldn’t really recognize them or reconcile them with the men I got to know in the first book. In any case, I got to know them in these new roles and while I did like them, I didn’t connect to them as deeply. Kit was a cute character and he actually did go through some development. His behavior was obviously new to me not having previously read anything similar to this but I did appreciate his growth and coming into himself. I think he gained a lot from his relationship with Colt and Lucas and I enjoyed seeing him become stronger and braver and find himself.

These three had an interesting relationship that is unique for sure. As a newbie to Daddy/Little romance, it was odd at times and I found things hard to grasp but I do think it was a learning experience. I admire the author’s wholehearted devotion to bringing these guys’ love story to life and Cara Dee did so in a respectable, poignant, and sweet way. This book opened my eyes to new things and for that, I really enjoyed Their Boy. Also, the romance was steamy as hell and very swoony. Angst was low and there was a sense of insta-love but damn, it was an entertaining read and it kept me hooked the whole way through. I never felt like I wanted to put it down and by the end, I was so happy with the way things turned out!

Sweet, sexy, and extra kinky, Their Boy is a uniquely entertaining romance!

Overall, I was impressed by this book and the way it allowed me to dive into a world I had never visited before and knew close to nothing about. I thought the characters were pretty good, the romance was engaging and the plot was interesting. I enjoyed the ending and as a whole really liked Cara Dee’s writing so I will certainly be reading more from her very soon. I am giving Their Boy 4.25 stars and would recommend it to fans of kinky, BDSM, and M/M romance!

 

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Top Priority – Cara Dee Book Review (The Game #1)

Blurb

In a perfect world, Lucas West would meet someone in one of the BDSM communities he was active in, someone who ached for a Daddy Dom as much as Lucas longed for a Little to care for. They would date, play, build something that was just for them, and share a future together.

In a perfect world, Colt Carter would get through his next deployment and then move closer to DC where he could create at least a semblance of a personal life. He wanted something outside of the Air Force, something kinky, something worth leaving everything behind for eventually. For years, he’d kept his inner Sadist and Daddy Dom locked up, only letting him out to play on rare occasions.

In a perfect world…

In reality, Lucas and Colt met each other.

Review

I am so obsessed with this couple!

Top Priority blew me away with how much I loved it. I was addicted from the get-go and flew through this little novella. This was my first Cara Dee read but I can guarantee it won’t be the last, not by a long shot!

These guys were crazy lovable and their romance was oh so entertaining!

Colt was a treat. I enjoyed his flirty, cheeky, and modest side. He was so much fun and seemed like such a great guy. He was also a fighter pilot which honestly is the way to my heart so I adored him. Lucas was awesome. He was so sweet, caring, and perceptive but he also had a hard-ass intensity about him that was great. He also seemed like a lot of fun and I so wanted to be his friend.

These two together for fiery hot. Their sexual chemistry was off-the-charts and I couldn’t get enough of their banter. I liked that their relationship wasn’t founded on insta-love. Insta-lust, sure but the love took time to develop and I appreciated that because it’s a rare commodity in novellas. Honestly, I can’t wait to read the next book because I’m really excited to see where the next chapter in their romance goes!

Quick, sexy, and full of flirty fun, Top Priority is one addictive romance!

Overall, I was hooked, line, and sinker for these guys and their gorgeous romance. I can’t wait to Their Boy because they’re so irresistible, a third will surely have me swooning like a loon. I am giving Top Priority 5 stars and would recommend it to fans of m/m romance.

 

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ARC: Breathless – Cara Dee Book Review (The Game #3)

Blurb

“Will you beat me without knowing the reason?”

That’s the question I ask when I go to clubs to seek out Sadists.

Most men say no immediately. They see the flags my question raises and walk away. They’re the good guys. They’re the guys who adhere to safe, sane, and consensual. They wanna be aware of the risks and cause no harm.

But I’m not looking for a good guy.

I’m looking for punishment.

The strobe lights hit me as I reach their table. The heavy, industrial music is deafening, and my head is swimming with images of grief, fire, and accusation. I hear the piercing tone of a machine letting me know that I have to tell my two kid brothers that our sister’s heart will never beat again.

Maybe these two twin Sadists will help me. The only thing bigger than River and Reese Tenley is their reputation. They better not let me down.

I ask my question. I ask if they’ll beat me without knowing why I want it.

They give me a stone-cold onceover, and I don’t know if it’s River or Reese who responds. He has a menacing-looking tattoo on his neck.

“Sure. It’s your funeral.”

Review

This series just keeps getting better and better and I can’t wait for more!

I fell in love with Cara Dee’s writing when I picked up Top Priority and Their Boy and have continued to fall for her brilliantly written kink novels as I’ve made my way through this amazing series. After meeting Reese and River in the previous book, Their Boy, I was very interested in exploring their characters, understanding their dynamic, and seeing them find their perfect match. Breathless truly delivered on all the fronts and gave Kit, Colt, and Luke a run for their money!

Breathless left me absolutely…breathless!

Sorry for that little pun but seriously, I was all over this book, addicted beyond compare and didn’t want it to end. Cara Dee writes the best kink I’ve ever read because it is so real, raw, authentic, and genuine. She showcases the side of kink that is often unexplored, the side that shows depth, and how BDSM culture can be therapeutic and liberating. We saw this with the previous triad and we saw it here as well. This lifestyle truly is a source of freedom and witnessing this is simply beautiful. On top of that, Cara Dee knows how to deliver some extreme steaminess, and whoa boy did I ever swoon-worthy. Her writing is just phenomenal and I’ll blindly read all the kink books she has to offer!

The characters in this book blew me away. Reese was such a good Daddy. His unwavering kindness, his ability to intuit exactly what Shay needed was and his loyalty made him so attractive. River, much like his brother, was caring, compassionate, and knew exactly what was needed of him as a Dom. He was there for Reese and Shay no matter what and knew just how to navigate their unique relationship dynamic. Finally, Shay was a wonderful character. He’d been through so much pain and suffering and couldn’t find a healthy way out of it yet he was so dedicated to his family and had a sweet heart.

The relationship between these three was very moving. I loved how just the act of River and Reese being close to Shay and taking care of him changed him and allowed him to settle into his true self. It was beautiful to witness, especially in such a short time because it showed just how perfect they were for one another and how the brothers knew exactly what Shay needed beyond what he wanted. Their connection was immediate, intense, and explosive. Their chemistry only continued to grow as time went on and the feelings that developed between them were genuine. River, Reese, and Shay just fit together so well and it was a pleasure to see their story unfold.

Now, as much as I adored this book, the characters, and the romance, I have two slight issues that I need to address. First, while I really enjoyed the dual points of view, I sorely missed out on River’s POV. We got Reese and Shay in spades but not a single chapter from River’s viewpoint and that was something I really would’ve liked to have. As a result of this omission, I felt less connected to River, and as if I didn’t know as much about him as I did the others. After all, everything I learned about him came from another person’s POV and no matter how close Reese might’ve been to River, his POV could never make up for the insight even a single River chapter would have provided. I was really disappointed by that, even if River wasn’t a big talker, all the more important to give the reader a glimpse into his mind.

My second issue and perhaps equal in weight to my first was the ending. Man, I was expecting so much more and it just hit a wall. It felt like it was cut off abruptly and I actually tried to scroll through my kindle to see if there was more because I couldn’t believe it ended so suddenly. It felt like I was given a copy with a chapter missing, really I just would’ve liked for it to have been tapered off in a more well-rounded way. I understand the authors’ motivation in letting their story breathe and not tacking on a concrete conclusion just yet but exploring River, Reese, and Shay in an actual relationship as opposed to just a kink dynamic triad would have been nice. Even if not much would’ve changed in their interactions, I would have liked for the emotional, romantic, and passionate side of their relationship, now that everything has been worked out and talked through to have been explored even if only in one chapter. Something was just missing and I’m hoping that their next appearance in the series will make up for this.

Addictive, engaging, and eye-opening, Breathless is kink written at it’s finest!

Overall, I really loved this book and it has only increased my appreciation for this series and this author. Cara Dee portrays kink in a beautiful and meaningful way and this series has been a pleasure to read. Breathless was a book that hooked me right in and didn’t let me go. I binged it and couldn’t get enough and I seriously can’t wait for more. I am giving Breathless 4.5 stars and would recommend it to fans of m/m/m romance with a kink trope.

 

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