Review: Asking for More - Lilah Pace

The incendiary author of Begging for It and Asking for It again plunges readers into the shadowy depths of love, pain, pleasure and peril...

How far is too far?

Finally sure of each other's strength and love, Jonah and Vivienne continue to explore their darkest fantasies together. However, what should be a night of ecstasy takes a dangerous turn, injuring Vivienne. She shrugs off the incident, but Jonah is haunted by it, particularly by the fear that others may believe he abuses her, or even glimpse the truth of their erotic obsession.

Then Jonah receives a call from his younger sister, Rebecca, who's dealing with trouble of her own in South America. When Vivienne travels with him to aid Rebecca, she learns yet more about his tortured history—and Jonah opens up to Vivienne as never before.

Can Vivienne help Jonah cast off the shadows of his past forever?

Asking for It Series:
Asking for It
Begging for It
Asking for More (Novella)

Visit Lilah Pace's website for more information

Review:
Asking for More was a lot shorter than I expected but it was nice to catch up with Vivienne and Jonah and see how they're getting on several months on from Begging for It. As a couple they've come such a long way and I really liked the changes we see in Vivienne and how she has started to pay attention to Jonah's needs as well as her own. I found her a little selfish in the previous books so this was a massive and welcome improvement.

I like the fact that even though they still enjoy playing out their darkest fantasies that isn't all their is to their relationship anymore, they also have normal intimacy and enjoy each other outside of their fantasies. Jonah in particular is still struggling with his desires and that was something that wasn't focused on as much in the main books so it was nice to see Vivienne support him for a change. They talk through his issues and Vivienne definitely gets a much better idea about why he likes to play their games but also why it worries him so much that he enjoys them.

I wouldn't recommend reading this if you've not read the previous books but if you're a fan of the series then I'm sure you'll enjoy this glimpse into Vivienne and Jonah's future. I feel much more confident about them lasting the distance as a couple now.

Source: Purchased

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Review: Begging for It - Lilah Pace

The provocative author of Asking for It once again explores the dark side of erotic obsession, and the secrets that make it as dangerous as it is irresistible.

Some secrets should only be shared in the dark.

Jonah and Vivienne’s erotic bond—living out raw scenarios of captivity and force—began as no-strings sex between strangers who shared the same desires. Now the intimacy between them is turning into love, but it’s a love built on fantasies so extreme that exploring them makes guilt inescapable. But the risks they're taking are far more dangerous than they'd imagined.

A stalker is terrorizing the city, and one of Jonah’s ex-lovers names him as a potential suspect to the police. Standing by a man under suspicion could cost Vivienne everything. But when Jonah’s stepfather takes advantage of the scandal to seize control of the Marks family fortune, Vivienne is drawn into her lover’s broken family and twisted past. Only then will she learn how dark the truth really is . . .

Asking for It Series:
Asking for It
Begging for It
Asking for More (Novella)

Visit Lilah Pace's website for more information

Review:
I loved Asking for It so I was really excited to read more of Vivienne and Jonah's story in Begging for It. I had such high hopes for them and I wanted to see them working through their issues both individually and as a couple. I wasn't expecting either of them to give up their kink, there's absolutely nothing wrong with two consenting adults enjoying whatever fantasy turns them on as long as nobody is getting hurt by it, but I did find it concerning that Vivienne couldn't enjoy sex in any other way. She has some deep rooted issues that she obviously needs to deal with for her own sake as well as for Jonah's.

I had such high hopes for this story that I can't help but come away feeling a little disappointed. Vivienne has no intention of changing, she doesn't want help and no matter how much she complains about hating herself for her desires she makes no effort to do anything about it. She's been in therapy for years and hasn't made even the tiniest bit of progress so either she's wasting her money on the world's most incompetent therapist or, much more likely in my opinion, she is pretending to pay attention and then blindly ignoring every piece of advice she's ever been given. It became so incredibly frustrating to see Jonah practically begging her to help him. He is desperate to change and working hard at dealing with his issues but whenever he asks her to bend even a little bit she gets resentful and starts acting like a child. She complains that Jonah won't give her what she needs but she never thinks about what Jonah needs. He doesn't want to give up their games altogether and he's not asking her to either but he doesn't want that to be all their relationship is about and she won't even try any other way.

Throw in the suspense of a serial rapist (and of course Jonah is the main suspect of the police investigation!) and the way Vivienne was acting made me dislike her even more. I didn't like her attitude and I found this book very frustrating to read. It felt like 90% of the story was Vivienne acting like a brat and then finally in the last 10% they had one couples session with the therapist and Vivienne was magically cured. The complete turn around she makes happens far too quickly to be believable and it all left me rolling my eyes. If I'm honest I can't for the life of me figure out why Jonah stuck it out for so long and I no longer care about them as a couple. This was such a disappointing sequel and it's made worse because I had such high expectations going in.

Source: Purchased

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Review: Asking for It - Lilah Pace

“This is who I am. This is what I want. Now I need a man dangerous enough to give it to me.”

Graduate student Vivienne Charles is afraid of her own desires—ashamed to admit that she fantasizes about being taken by force, by a man who will claim her completely and without mercy. When the magnetic, mysterious Jonah Marks learns her secret, he makes an offer that stuns her: they will remain near-strangers to each other, and meet in secret so that he can fulfill her fantasy.

Their arrangement is twisted. The sex is incredible. And—despite their attempts to stay apart—soon their emotions are bound together as tightly as the rope around Vivienne’s wrists. But the secrets in their pasts threaten to turn their affair even darker . . .

Reader Advisory: Asking for It deals explicitly with fantasies of non-consensual sex. Readers sensitive to portrayals of non-consensual sex should be advised.

Asking for It Series:
Asking for It
Begging for It
Asking for More (Novella)

Visit Lilah Pace's website for more information

Review:
Asking for It touches on a bit of a controversial subject and I'll warn you now that if you have triggers it's probably a book you need to stay well clear of. There are flashbacks to scenes of rape and abuse, not between the main characters but to things that have happened to them or that they witnessed, so that is understandably going to make some people uncomfortable. I don't tend to read many dark books but I like to step out of my comfort zone occasionally and I was intrigued by this one.

I'm not a fan of the term "rape fantasy" because I don't think things are that simple, there is a very big difference between a woman fantasising about rough, out of control, sex with a guy (even a stranger) that she finds attractive to her being forced into something against her will by someone that she may or may not be interested in sexually. I don't have a problem with someone wanting to give up control and experience a darker side to sex but I really don't think the word rape should be used to describe it. The very fact that Vivienne is fantasising about sex with Jonah, that everything they do is discussed in detail before it happens and that they have set rules in place to make sure everything is completely consensual meant I was able to enjoy reading the sex scenes between them. They definitely both like things on the rough side but there is no denying the chemistry between them or how mind-blowingly hot this story was.

What I really enjoyed about Asking for It was how well we got to know the main characters, even though the story is told from Vivienne's point of view I felt like I got to see a bit of what made Jonah tick and I really liked them both. They're both more than a little messed up thanks to things from their past but I enjoyed seeing them get to know each other and it was good to see Vivienne starting to accept her desires and realise that there was nothing wrong with her kink. They go into things determined to keep their relationship purely sexual, they will indulge in their wildest fantasies together but they have no plans to get to know each other or start dating. Of course now that they've both found the person who can give them everything they ever wanted it's not quite as simple as that and it doesn't take long before the lines begin to blur. It was fascinating to see the growing connection between them and I liked that it wasn't all about the sex.

This isn't the kind of story that gives you a happily ever after, or even really a happily for now, but I have extremely high hopes that they'll be able to make things work eventually and I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of the sequel Begging for It. Lilah Pace has tackled a difficult subject with sensitivity, she made me believe in both of these characters and want to see them get the love that they deserve. She's definitely an author to watch out for and her future books will be going to the top of my to read pile.

Source: Received from the author in exchange for an honest review

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