and I have been frequently known to say 'never say never.' what happened here is not only proof of that but it's proof of the fact that a good book is a good book and when it comes to Cara Dee and her series 'Camassia Cove' a good book seems to be a given. While 'Power Play' isn't listed as one of the books in the 'Camassia Cove' series but as a stand alone it not only takes place mostly in 'Camassia Cove' it involves many of the characters that have been introduced in that series and for me it really should be it's just too connected to so many of the characters not to be...but that's just my meandering thoughts. I haven't read all of the 'Camassia Cove' books, but, I have read enough to be familiar with the characters and their background stories. A fact that I think made this story just that little bit more enjoyable for me.
Now, if you haven't read this book or any of the other books in this series but plan to than please stop here and come back when you've read the books. If you don't ever plan to read these books...well, I'm not sure I get you and if we're friends? Well, really you must be freakin' amazing for us to...no never mind, we're friends of course you're amazing... anyways, carry on.
The other fun part of reading this story for me was that I got to read it with my Buddy Read Besties...Christelle, Josy and Simone, because what's a buddy read without an official stalker, right? You are all awesome and reading a story like this with friends like you is...well, it's just more fun than a barrel of monkeys.
'Power Play' is about a relationship that most people would deem outside of the norm...some would even say it's wrong, but that's because sometimes people are quick to judge. So lets take a look at the basic dynamics here before I get into all the thoughts, feelings and questions that this story provoked in me...
Madigan has known Abel and his brother from a very early age and was a close friend not only to their father but to Adie and Lincoln their adoptive parents he became a regular fixture in their lives when their father passed away and has always shared a special bond with Abel but Abel's not a little boy anymore...he's a hockey player in the NHL and he deals not only with the attention that this brings which can be challenging for anyone but for someone who has Bipolar Disorder it's an even more stressful life to lead. Consistency and routine are crucial to Abel but no one grounds him and just gets him like Mad (Madigan) and when Abel sends a simple text that reveals how he feels about Mad things between them become strained and suddenly Abel finds Mad avoiding him at every opportunity and Abel begins to unravel little by little until he suddenly finds himself with too much time on his hands after getting suspended from his team and decides to head home to Camassia, his family and to face Madigan.
Ok so now you've got the gist of things. We've got Madigan Monroe who's 40ish, making him approximately 20ish some years older than Abel and he's known Abel for most of Abel's life...yeah, that's right we've arrived folks...we're in the land of Daddy kink...now, before you question the blurb or wonder how I missed this...I didn't I knew what I was getting myself into but I have these awesome friends who were there and saying 'come on Karen, read it with us. We'll hold your hand and keep you safe and then there was Christelle sitting there with me going I will if you will and Josy who being much braver than the apprehensive old ladies just smiled and offered encouragement and support until we all admitted that we knew we were doing this and got on with it.
I have to admit I've only ever read one other book that was about daddy kink...ok, I didn't really read it I listened to the audio book and can I just say...I totally blame Nick J. Russo for that one, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. So back to 'Power Play'. I have no other words for this but apprehension. Abel's not figuratively young enough to be Mad's son, he's literally young enough and he's known Mad since he was a wee little guy and Mad's been a sort of father figure for him for a good chunk of his life...seriously I was not seeing this as something that would go well and part way through it what I realized was that I was seeing how I thought the story would work for me and not how it really did work.
I was pretty much blown away by how easily the author just sucked me right into this one. It's got Daddy kink and DD/lb (which I didn't have to look up because I have friends who write awesome reviews and I might have done some peeking before I went into this one...not the norm for me but sometimes a little research helps. So if you want to know more before you read this one check out the book page and the fabulous reviews already posted on GoodReads for this title and others in Cara Dee's 'Camassia Cove' series.
Ok, so at the bottom of all this was a story about two men who have loved each other for a long time but as with most things in this world they have both grown and changed and when this happens what was isn't always what's needed. Mad and Abel have both grown and the changes that's brought about in each of their lives has necessitated a change in their relationship dynamics and how it's going to work for them. I found myself wondering if Abel was my kid would I want this type of relationship for him and surprisingly I realized that yes I would. If it was as positive for him and enabled him to continue to spread his wings and grow to become all that he was capable of being while meeting his needs regardless of how I may feel about or perceive those needs because it's not for me to judge, than yes, I would love and support my child in their relationship. Ultimately as a parent it should be my child's happiness that matters most not whether or not my perceptions are met and then I wondered...if Madigan was my friend would I want this for him? and again my head and my heart said yes, if it made him truly happy than as his friend I should want that for him because again perceptions vs. happiness for those I care about...there's no real decision to be made here.
'Power Play' is not the first Cara Dee novel that's made me ask myself questions like these and I really enjoy that when an author not only draws me into an incredible story but leave me wondering and questioning myself and what I would think or do at the end of it...touching base with myself to ensure that I'm still the person that I want to be.
There were other events in this story that I know concerned some readers and just to name the elephant in the room because it's been discussed to death and hey, you warned ages ago that if you planned on reading this book you needed to not go any further so I'm just going to touch briefly on the threesome that occurred towards the end of the book and all I'm going to say is that for me this was handled by the author in such a way as to make it totally a non-issue in my reading experience. In fact to be totally honest it was hot and really solidified the connection for me that was between Madigan and Abel.
So far all the books that I've read in this series have all gotten 5 stars and while I only gave this one 4 stars that was probably as much a reflection of my personal comfort level with the topic of age play and daddy kink and it was any niggles that I may have had. But despite that I am so glad that I read this book and I really enjoyed it, I may not have loved every page but I definitely loved a whole lot more than I didn't so overall this was a win no doubt about it and if you're looking to check out a story about daddy kink, DD/lb, age play or just something good to read I definitely recommend this one...right after you've at least read book #5 and possibly #3 from 'Camassia Cove' trust me you'll enjoy this all the more for having done that little thing and they're good stories by an awesome author...really, what have you got to loose?
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