I bought this novella because someone on my twitter feed mentioned it in passing, and I'm really glad I did. It's about an Orthodox woman named Tzipporah who manages to be fulfilled both spiritually and sexually in her marriage.
I've read a fair number of romances that involve characters who feel they need to leave their strict communities in order to be happy in their relationships, either because they're not straight or because of kink. This is the first one I've read in which someone found happiness within a strict religious community because her desires (in the case, the desire to submit sexually) could be compatible with those teachings. In her marriage to her husband Elan, they are equals outside of the bedroom, which makes their BDSM sex life even more fulfilling for both of them.
I started this book expecting her sexual desires to be the source of most or all of the conflict, and instead it was how Tzipporah, who had been raised Jewish but not in an Orthodox community, could fit in with her religious community when she hadn't been born into it. It was really interesting to see her and her husband connect via sex while still needing to learn to trust and communicate with each other outside of the bedroom. I thought the emotional arc could have used a couple more chapters to explore how that developed over time, and perhaps to show how their deepening understanding of each other emotionally was then reflected in their sex life. I wanted a bit more resolution than the novella was able to give me. On the whole I really enjoyed it, though.
Grade: B
I've read a fair number of romances that involve characters who feel they need to leave their strict communities in order to be happy in their relationships, either because they're not straight or because of kink. This is the first one I've read in which someone found happiness within a strict religious community because her desires (in the case, the desire to submit sexually) could be compatible with those teachings. In her marriage to her husband Elan, they are equals outside of the bedroom, which makes their BDSM sex life even more fulfilling for both of them.
I started this book expecting her sexual desires to be the source of most or all of the conflict, and instead it was how Tzipporah, who had been raised Jewish but not in an Orthodox community, could fit in with her religious community when she hadn't been born into it. It was really interesting to see her and her husband connect via sex while still needing to learn to trust and communicate with each other outside of the bedroom. I thought the emotional arc could have used a couple more chapters to explore how that developed over time, and perhaps to show how their deepening understanding of each other emotionally was then reflected in their sex life. I wanted a bit more resolution than the novella was able to give me. On the whole I really enjoyed it, though.
Grade: B
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