Power Exchange (Power Exchange #1) Paperback – August 26, 2013

** 4.75 stars **I really enjoyed this book. Apart from a great plot this book shined a positive light on BDSM practices and made me see the emotional side in the relationship between Dom and his submissive. It was well-paced and had a good balance between sexual and criminal parts. All the secondary characters added to the wholesomeness of the book.Gavin Degrassi is a homicide detective and he loves his job. He is loyal, steadfast and a very decent human being. He is married and it all seems to be picture perfect. Only he knows how far from truth that is. His life is slowly falling apart and he does not even know it until a string of gruesome murders shake the BDSM community. When that happens a consultant is invited to give his insight on possible motive. Ben Haverson is a Dom and he reads people well. I think he sees the real Gavin and what he needs. It all comes together when Gavin's marriage is in shambles and he finally admits to himself that he is free to be himself - to be out and proud and Ben is there to guide him, support him and teach him. He is the perfect Dom to his perfect submissive. I loved the patience and care Ben had for Gavin, how easy-going and sure he was when he took Gavin to new heights, how helpful he was when Gavin was falling apart. Ben had issues of his own and Gavin unknowingly helped him gain his confidence back, to become the man Gavin needed, the man he used to be.The murders were grisly, gut-churning and simply painful. Even the detectives found it hard to deal with the feelings that they caused, and having known some of the victims made it too real and scary. I loved this whole part except for the fact that the killer was way too obvious. And that made it a little less thrilling but still the book as a whole was wonderfully written, engrossing and exciting. I loved the characters, the investigative aspect, the intimacy and care and all the settings of the book. I highly recommend it! I had a great time!

This book bound me so tight that I tried to stop my life to keep reading it. I loved the open-mindedness of Gavin the detective, walking into a BDSM club to ask hard questions, yet being smart enough to hold onto sensitivity. I also liked that he was somewhat surprised and nervous to realize the things he saw there made him uncomfortable in an exciting way.As I said in the title of this review, this is a great little tutorial for those interested in learning more about BDSM from the point of view of a newbie. The information was fairly complete and accurate, and all within the confines of a budding romance.This would have been a 5-star read if the "who-dunnit" aspect had been stronger - I figured out fairly early who the killer was, and it was slightly disappointing that Gavin didn't put it together sooner. Although - to give some credit to the story - Gavin was highly preoccupied and submitting himself, literally, to a host of new experiences, all of which perhaps distracted him from the case.Even though I knew who the perp was, the story climax was incredibly well done. And the epilogue that detailed the aftermath cemented the characters as real people in my head - they didn't just saunter off into the dungeon for kinky sex the moment the bruises healed, and I appreciate the reality check.It was interesting that about 2/3 of the way through the book, it occurred to me that Gavin never once mentioned carrying a firearm. Most police protagonists mention their gun every other minute. This is a neutral point - didn't change my enjoyment of the book one way or another, just thought I'd mention it because it's an oddity for a serial-killer murder mystery.Don't expect a constant stream of erotica from this book, either. Except for the gay-BDSM sex, it reads very much like mainstream fiction, meaning there is equal weight between story and erotica - and I love, love, love books like this - with lots of story and lots of character development... with the additional pleasure of the author opening the bedroom door wide to let us in.I especially enjoyed Gavin's internal struggles, being in his POV as he felt and experienced discomfort both physically and emotionally.This was a great read.