Putting The Sexy In Stockholm

"Each piece of work was attempting to describe the human condition, 
in all its good, bad and ugly glory...
Each story wanted, 
no --needed--to reveal a human fragility, 
a human bondage which tied people to the things they did 
and to be the person they held in their heads. 
Those stories were something true 
and sometimes horrific, 
but people were people and the parts 
didn't just tell the whole story."”

--CJ Roberts, Captive in the Dark

Genre: Adult Erotica

Publisher: CJ Roberts, 276 pages

Publication Date: July 20th, 2011

Source: Bought
Goodreads

Goodreads Description

Caleb is a man with a singular interest in revenge. Kidnapped as a young boy and sold into slavery by a power-hungry mobster, he has thought of nothing but vengeance. For twelve years he has immersed himself in the world of pleasure slaves searching for the one man he holds ultimately responsible. Finally, the architect of his suffering has emerged with a new identity, but not a new nature. If Caleb is to get close enough to strike, he must become the very thing he abhors and kidnap a beautiful girl to train her to be all that he once was.

Eighteen-year-old Olivia Ruiz has just woken up in a strange place. Blindfolded and bound, there is only a calm male voice to welcome her. His name is Caleb, though he demands to be called Master. Olivia is young, beautiful, naïve and willful to a fault. She has a dark sensuality that cannot be hidden or denied, though she tries to accomplish both. Although she is frightened by the strong, sadistic, and arrogant man who holds her prisoner, what keeps Olivia awake in the dark is her unwelcome attraction to him.

WARNING: This book contains very disturbing situations, dubious consent, strong language, and graphic violence.

My Thoughts

WARNING: THIS BOOK IS NOT SUITABLE FOR THOSE UNDER 18, CONTAINS SEXUAL SITUATIONS AND DISTURBING CONTENT

Well...this is gonna be awkward. Ah, how to describe this book...I kind of can't. This book is extremely dark, haunting, and--pardon my French--totally fucked up. So of course my twisted little heart loved it. I cannot lie this was not an easy read. Hell, to be honest, I do not even think I can recommend this book to normal people due to the content. I mean I LOVED it...will everyone?...Probably not. This is the type of book that you either get or you don't. Objectively, there are people who will see this as nothing but Stockholm Syndrome and bash it for romanticizing the situation but that is so not what this book is about. I had to throw that out there though because I know how people think. I thought this book was brave, edgy, sexy and dark in all the ways and in all the places most people would never go. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Oh and HUGE shoutout to Nereyda for recommending me this book. She knew what she was doing and knew my dark and twisted heart would love it. Love ya girl! :)

Ok, so Livvie has been kidnapped by a man she met on the street who had pseudo-rescued her from a creepy man who was following her. Unbeknownst to her, he had been watching her for weeks. This is where the story initially gets twisted because she encountered her kidnapper prior to the event--and found him extremely attractive--so in her head, he is already a sort of safe zone for her. And while he does many things to disprove that theory she continues to feel this pull for him. I totally got this for some reason. Even a 2 minute encounter with a stranger who ends up kidnapping you, mentally puts up a sort of safety net. I can't explain it, but I totally could understand LIvvie feeling okay around him at some points. He was familiar in a way that he shouldn't have been. The first wall came down.

Caleb...oh Caleb, where do I begin with you? We don't know his story until probably 3/4 of the way through the book. Warning now, that is extremely difficult to read about. Like Nereyda and I discussed on Twitter, it is totally necessary for the story but it doesn't make it any easier. My heart broke for this poor, broken soul. And when the inevitable happens and he starts to have feelings for Livvie he never has before...well, my dark little heart wanted him to have his happy ending. 

But of course, our stories are never that easy. The emotional and romantic part of this story does not come easily by any means. It takes a while. Caleb has a job to do and he is not easy to like at first. You want to like him but know he was a little bit of work to do first. I just wanted shake him at points and yell, "Just give in already!!! Let yourself love her! Gah, you're killing her emotionally!!! And me!" Not gonna lie though, I like to think of myself as a very evolved human being. I believe I am somewhat intelligent and not barbaric in the least...but there is a part in this book where Caleb has to um...be vicious to other people in order to defend Livvie and let me tell you...my primal instincts found this very hot. I know. I sound like a cave woman but there is just something about a man getting pushed to the brink of insanity and violence when his woman is threatened or hurting that gets my heart every time. Sorry not sorry. I would want my man's instinct to be to hurt someone if I were in trouble--I am not saying I want him to get violent, it is just the thought that counts. 

Speaking of, let's talk about our man girl for a second. Livvie is a fighter, man. Her characterization was so complex and beautiful it made the entire book for me. The diversity in her character was something I could relate to. One one hand, she was the fierce and combative woman who refused to be taken in and taken advantage of...and on the other hand, it was just too much to bear and she had to give in and accept things "her Master" said. I think we all have these types of extremes in our personalities. We are not only one way or one extreme all the time. I know I'm not. I've got the Sicilian mafioso attitude most of the time, but when I have a friend who is down I'm soft spoken and comforting. We all have light and dark inside of us. I think that is what this books shows. Humans are complex animals and there are too many shades of gray and rarely ever black and white. 

Should You Read This? Yes and no. If this sounds like your kind of book then for the love of all things literary GO READ IT. If this doesn't sound like your cup of tea then stick to the light and fluffy. This book is a hard read with a lot of emotional and psychological issues. It is not for the weak hearted reader. But if you do read it--I really, really hope this is your kind of book--TELL ME so we can talk about it :)