Wednesday 3 September 2014

Blog Tour ~ Review, Excerpt & Guest Post from Author ~ Blue (Darkness Falls #3) by Ivory Quinn

If you love something, you let it go, right? If they love you in return, they’ll come back.

A year ago, Blue let Noelle walk out the door into another man’s arms and he’s done with waiting for her to come back. She’s his. She’s always been his. She just doesn’t know it yet.

The only thing that stands between them is his past and the woman that almost broke him. Does he love Noelle enough to face his demons and can he trust her to bring their love full circle? Finding out might just kill them both.


Book Description:

Blue is gearing up to set out on a full scale seduction where Red is concerned. He’s done with letting other men break her heart and it’s time she realised she belongs to him.

He has her on the edge of giving in to him when there’s a call from Cal demanding they return to The Manor. James, one of Red’s favourite subs, has been abducted from the club and left for dead on the door step of The Manor. As the situation unravels, it turns out that the perpetrator is a woman from Blue’s past.

Fresh out of jail, his ex-lover Alexandra will go to any lengths to have him back, destroying everyone and everything he loves in her quest to force him back into her orbit. Taking James was just the first in a series of bold and destructive moves, designed to tear Blue apart.

Blue needs his family and Red more than ever, but he knows that he can’t give anyone his all until he’s faced up to his past and laid it to rest.
 
 
Excerpt:

Unable to face the look he was sure would be on their faces, Blue stumbled blindly from the room and headed in search of somewhere less confusing.

“Blue!” Noelle had followed him out, but he ignored her. “Blue! Stop!”

“I need to be alone.” Shame made him sharp, but he should have known better than to think that would stop her.

“No, you don’t.” A tiny hand slipped into his, entwining their fingers. “You need to be reminded who you are in the here and now. You need to talk about it. You need to trust me.”

“I…” He didn’t even know who this version of himself was. He stopped in the hallway, uncertain where to go. Nowhere felt like it would be the sanctuary he needed more than anything else.

“Chloe, can you give us an hour and then bring breakfast for two to my room, please.” Noelle took over, seeming to know what he needed better than he did. The sub standing behind the reception desk nodded once, flashing a concerned glance at Blue. He couldn’t believe he was letting anyone see him like this. “Come on.” He followed her up the stairs, meek and trusting. She seemed so certain and he felt so numb, like his brain was full of cotton wool.

They entered her room and she pushed the door shut behind them, hitting the lights and drawing the curtains. Her hands went to the buttons of her blouse and he swallowed. “What are you doing?”

“Giving you something to lose yourself in until you’re able to deal with this.” She shrugged, dragging the blouse from her shoulders and letting it pool on the floor.

“You said you weren’t ready.” He replied automatically and she nodded.

“I did. But you need this.”

“How did you know?” He reached for his own buttons, only then realising that his hands were trembling.

“Know what?” She was shimmying out of her jeans, kicking her shoes across the floor.

“That you’re the only place I feel safe.”

She blushed, the warmth radiating over her creamy skin. “Because you taught me that.” She took over removing his clothes. “Home isn’t always a building. Sometimes it’s a person or people. Sometimes there’s more sanctuary in someone familiar than there is in a house you grew up in. Let me be that for you, Blue.”

Our Review:

**ARC Received for honest review**

Reviewed by Donna ~ 4 Stars
 
“Home isn’t always a building. Sometimes it’s a person or people. Sometimes there’s more sanctuary in someone familiar than there is in a house you grew up in. Let me be that for you, Blue...Let me be your sanctuary.”
 
It seems ages ago that I stumbled across Ivory Quinn’s first book Obsession. As much as that book destroyed me it was a brilliant book and one that started my Obsession with this series. When Master Blue was first introduced, I fell hard…I loved him and I couldn’t wait for his story, then I was told his story wasn’t planned (cue major freak out!!) Thank god we fans managed to persuade her otherwise.
 
Master Blue has always held a torch for Mistress Red/Noelle, from their very first meeting he fell hard, not easy for a Dom, especially when the object of your desires is also a Domme. How can two tops make a relationship work? Master Blue is adamant that it will work, Mistress Red not so much, but can Master Blue be convincing enough to make her see sense?
 
Noelle/Mistress Red’s life has been one whirlwind, with life throwing everything at her at once. Master Blue managed to piece her back together only having her recover and then find love elsewhere, he was devastated. He now has an opening, they have split and Master Blue is adamant that he will not let her walk away again. Will life finally align to make this a possibility or will their pasts come back to haunt them and make a relationship the furthest thing from either of their minds?

These two have a lot to overcome and this book is packed with twists and turns that you will never see coming. One thing for sure is that Ivory Quinn has either done extensive research or is actually in “the know” herself. The scenes surrounding the BDSM world, to me, are so life like and realistic, I personally have no experience whatsoever in this field, I have knowledge garnered from reading stories like this but I found myself entranced in the life and overtaken by the scenes. They were heartfelt, passionate and all-consuming.

“If you choose anyone else to be your reclamation, if you ask anyone else to have command over you, I’ll break her f**king face.”
…God help him, he’d nearly jizzed his trousers like a rookie.

We finally get to see Master Blue’s past life and it is not pretty. Seeing the person that he is in the present it was hard to believe what had happened in the past, but that is what made him the man he was today. He draws from his past experiences to help others, selfless to a fault but has he really got over his past? When life throws a curve ball he has a lot to deal with and with the help of Mistress Red, Cal, Storm and the team Master Blue is in the best place to fight his demons.

Ivory’s writing is growing with every book; you can see the leaps and bounds that she has made since Obsession. I was totally captivated with their story and did not want it to end. In fact, I still want more; to me their story is just beginning. Papa Bear was ever present as were the all the guys from Darkness Falls but we did not hear much from Jax…hmmm I hope it is his book that is next.

“I thought that perhaps just being in your orbit would be enough, but it’s not. You’re not just my sun; you’re my solar mass and my north star. You’re my gravity and my atmosphere. I can’t breathe without you and I’m tired of hiding it…I just wanted you to come home. To me.”
 
This is a great series and one that I have loved since the beginning. I can’t wait to see where Ivory is going to take this next.
 
Buy Links:
 
 
 
Guest Post by Ivory Quinn:

I was asked to write a guest post on a topic of my choice and I thought it might be interesting to talk about one of the characters from the Darkness Falls world. You might be surprised to know that, after Blue and Jax, the character I get asked about most often is Thomas. It seems the little sub has piqued your collective imagination and in many ways I completely understand why. He’s probably the hardest character for the ‘vanilla’ mind to comprehend.

He really comes into his own in Blue and you get to understand a bit more about his character and nature. He has his fiery moments where he stands up for himself in situations he’s not happy with, but on the whole this book is very much a struggle for him because he finds it hard to deal with people that can’t understand his personality.

From the outside and to the untrained eye, being a submissive is tantamount to being a doormat or an abuse victim. Having been a victim of domestic abuse myself, it’s something I take issue with. Most people don’t really understand the desire to please or care for a person so absolutely. They also don’t understand that, in many cases, submitting to someone is not sexual. There’s a controversial moment in Blue where Thomas compares it to being a priest. It’s not religious, but the feeling is the same. In a same way that a person can devote their life to God and His Son and to caring for His house and His flock, a submissive can devote their life to a person they revere, their house and their belongings. It’s a relatively accurate analogy in many respects. In the same way a priest would receive unconditional love, forgiveness and caring from God, the sub receives love, care and (sometimes through punishment) forgiveness from their dominant. It’s no mistake that of the 5 broadly defined types of Mistress, one is a Queen and one is a Goddess. It’s an aspect of emotion that defines the relationship, making it something healthy if the top is worthy of that reverence and is giving in return.

I get asked a lot if Thomas is based on a true person. If you’ve followed my writing for any length of time, you’ll know that nearly all my characters in these first few books are based on people that have been significant in my life. Thomas is no exception. You will have to trust me when I say that none of fictional Thomas’ kinks or quirks are exaggerated. If anything, I played them down.

People assume that being the dominant partner in a relationship like that must be the best thing ever – someone does all your housework and cooking and cares for you so you never have to lift a finger. It’s not that simple at all. Yes, you have all those amazing benefits, but it’s actually hard work. Part of the submissive nature is a need to be recognised for it and a need to be praised when they get it right. Affection is such a powerful thing, both in the withholding and granting of it. For a sub, being in a symbiotic relationship like that is a constant feeling of belonging, of knowing exactly where you are in the world and who you are with. The level of communication far exceeds anything you’d find in a regular vanilla relationship. There’s almost a constant stream of consciousness between the participants. It’s intense and involved and has to be managed carefully to avoid becoming draining.

On a typical day, I’d have to set tasks so that he knew I wasn’t taking him for granted, that I was giving serious consideration to the things I was asking. A lot of the time those were things for his benefit – insisting he ate three square meals, drank water, remembered to take breaks. If he did something wrong, there were consequences. It’s a world of basic rules, which is infinitely easier to navigate than the world outside. To return to the religious analogy, if a believer sins, he gets to his knees and confesses them and (if Catholic) gets his Hail Marys allocated to him. God then wipes his slate clean. If a sub screws up, he confesses and gets his punishment, admittedly a bit more than saying prayers, and then his slate too is wiped clean. There are no grudges, no anger and no recrimination. Everyone knows what’s happening and why. It’s a simple way to live if you can get it right.

I’m glad that many people both love and are curious about the character of Thomas. I hope it’s opened up people’s eyes and minds to the realities of living with a sub, that are so often portrayed badly in fiction. My Thomas is no longer with me, but he will always be in my life via the books and for that I’m glad. He’s the sweetest and most loyal of characters and I hope that shines through in the books. I hope, in reading Blue, you come to care for him as much as I do.
 
About the Author:

Ivory Quinn is an author of indeterminate youth, living in a land where the sun rarely shines but the mist makes everything magical. She likes men and books, but doesn’t think either makes a great sandwich filling. Unmarried and living with other creative types, she has a healthy relationship with her bed. She wishes that writing was her day job, but sadly has a large percentage of non-writing time, made bearable only by classic rock and lots of caffeinated things. Her favourite things are fan mail, cake and men in kilts. She does not see these things as mutually exclusive.

Author links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ivory-Quinn/533166043392982?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/IvoryQuinn_
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7023735.Ivory_Quinn?from_search=true
Blog: http://alylonna.wordpress.com/

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