tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post547850595708743936..comments2024-03-26T01:10:13.720+00:00Comments on Teach Me Tonight: RFI: Female Dominant RomancesE. M. Selingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00426524354823232002noreply@blogger.comBlogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-62428733641535178602019-05-06T08:54:56.050+01:002019-05-06T08:54:56.050+01:00Hi I know I am replying very late but I just read ...Hi I know I am replying very late but I just read through the post now. I too was looking for dominant heroines both in and out of bed. To me you are not ranting. I feel the same way. I have stopped reading any romance because the heroine is either a simpering idiot or so big hearted that she forgives the hero for all the shit he put her though with or without a few lines of apology or he just puts her over his shoulder and forces her to accept him. But God forbid the heroine wrongs the hero, she goes through shit and is humiliated and has to turn to him in utter helplessness. I call bullshit. I want strong women. As a reader how can I empathise with the above ? Why whould I want to be one of them ..weak,helpless and powerless women. So now I am stuck with trawling through thousands of books trying to find an alpha heroine. I have got a few in action/detective/paranormal...but none in romance.From a die hard bibliophile, I hardly read books now ..sick of it being all about men , men and more men and them dominating all the time. I want us to win not them. Sorry will stop venting now. Please do recommend any stories where the heroine is dominant and wins the battles and wars - BDSM or regular. <br />Anuarseshathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07003983970844245147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-82982144974445244552018-02-09T18:35:16.630+00:002018-02-09T18:35:16.630+00:00I have one in historical genre. Dominating Mr Darl...I have one in historical genre. Dominating Mr Darling by victoria vale and it is good.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00639029806987739833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-20233222724875976792016-06-23T19:06:22.280+01:002016-06-23T19:06:22.280+01:00Straight up romance book, futuristic "Lord of...Straight up romance book, futuristic "Lord of the Storm" by Justine DavisAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-16690934747692050242015-10-23T14:01:37.747+01:002015-10-23T14:01:37.747+01:00This comment has been removed by the author.anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10420012085733359766noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-77003269885077846912012-09-20T09:44:55.395+01:002012-09-20T09:44:55.395+01:00"I know I'm ranting and I apologize--espe..."I know I'm ranting and I apologize--especially since the post isn't precisely recent. It's just that with 50 Shades all over the place"<br /><br />Absolutely no need to apologise! I hope some of the books mentioned here are more to your taste and if you haven't already seen it, I think you might enjoy <a href="http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/f-reviews/review-fifty-shades-of-grey-by-e-l-james/" rel="nofollow">Angela Toscano's review of <i>50</i></a>. I suspect her feelings about the book are not dissimilar to yours.Laura Vivancohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00906661869372622821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-70413168244545192102012-09-20T07:55:07.613+01:002012-09-20T07:55:07.613+01:00I may have to look for some of these...! Found th...I may have to look for some of these...! Found this through a search. Just wanted to see if there was any erotic fiction out there involving some F/M Domme action that wasn't too into playing the "Women as dominants are sadistic and creepy" trope.<br />The best I've been able to do on my own so far is a few like the Mercy Thompson series and the Walker Papers. Pretty much it. Strong female leads, no real kink.<br />I've just been recommended way, way too many "romance" novels where the male hero--and I use the term loosely-- seems to think that raping the female lead into submission is a perfectly healthy way to get her attention. And his way, of course.<br />I know I'm ranting and I apologize--especially since the post isn't precisely recent. It's just that with <i>50 Shades</i> all over the place (which features a creepy, controlling, sadistic jerk who ignores No, stalks the heroine, and uses "It's okay, I'm into BSDM" as an excuse for his liking to beat women as part of his mommy issues--seriously, the author did not do much research here)...I've about had it. I need something more to my taste! Something where the woman isn't a simpering idiot. And if that means she picks up a riding crop...all the better, I say.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-56833310853411363922009-02-17T13:25:00.000+00:002009-02-17T13:25:00.000+00:00I know your course etc is probably over by now, bu...I know your course etc is probably over by now, but in case you want a good read, I heartily recommend the Laurell K Hamilton, Merry Gentry Series, The heroine is a princess (immediately placing her in dominant to the men the majority of the time) there's elements of sadism and masochism, blood is drawn a couple of times throughout the books, but more interesting is the romance being between the heroine, and several men, but still very definitely being romance. Also there's Queen Andais, Merry's aunt, who is a true sadist, and with the balancing act of court intrigue come much more restrictions than mere ropes can provide.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-18362352120514201982008-03-12T20:56:00.000+00:002008-03-12T20:56:00.000+00:00I just remembered - Heart of Deception by Taylor C...I just remembered - Heart of Deception by Taylor Chase. The heroine, Vivian is queen of the London underworld in Elizabethan London and she totally dominates the hero who is her guard and an underling (and also an undercover spy). I remember there's one scene where she makes him strip and pose for her, mostly to teach him she's the boss. <BR/><BR/>This is what <A HREF="http://www.mrsgiggles.com/books/chase_deception.html" REL="nofollow">Mrs Giggles had to say</A>: <I>Rafe's relationship with Viv is more of a power play, a game of dominion and subjugation of the sexes, as Viv spins a web of lust around Rafe. Did I mention that Viv is called the virago man-eater by her men (they're praising her, by the way) and the nickname actually fits?</I><BR/><BR/>I think Chase - aka Gayle Feyrer - wrote a great Maid Marion, too. But I have no idea if she was a dominant, as I haven't read it.Meriamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11832436776375729050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-70225920409184655972008-03-12T20:19:00.000+00:002008-03-12T20:19:00.000+00:00Not exactly a romance, and not erotica, but an int...Not exactly a romance, and not erotica, but an interesting look at a society that is female ruled is Wen Spencer's "A Brother's Price." Basically, it takes place in a world where men are so rare that female sisters form reverse harems. The men are treasured and protected (and domestic) and the women go to war.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-19648971515215141742008-03-12T06:22:00.000+00:002008-03-12T06:22:00.000+00:00Sarah, I don't know that this will be of any help ...Sarah, I don't know that this will be of any help to you but Jayne Ann Krentz has a number of books in which there is a scene in which the heroine ties up the hero and dominates him (usually after he's done it to her, and it usually winds up with him taking over). It's just sex play, not the actual nature of the relationship. There's a very funny one in a <I>faux</I> torture chamber in <B>Gift of Fire.</B><BR/><BR/>There are also a few knock-down-and-drag-out sex scenes between Eve and Roarke in the J.D. Robb <B>In Death</B> series--again, mostly play, but genuine use of fighting skills. Eve wins sometimes but not always.talpiannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13978075304795724185noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-38749541166707304802008-03-10T12:25:00.000+00:002008-03-10T12:25:00.000+00:00If it does not need to be sexual domination and cl...If it does not need to be sexual domination and classics are allowed, try Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South: two dominant charactars whose ideas an views collide constantly. At the end of the book their opinions have both changed under the influence of the other. At that point his factory has gone bankrupt so when they finally come together she is in the stronger position.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-30957917637214631612008-03-09T20:17:00.000+00:002008-03-09T20:17:00.000+00:00I've had another thought. If Lord of Scoundrels is...I've had another thought. If <I>Lord of Scoundrels</I> is about a dominant female maybe you'd think Heyer's <I>Devil's Cub</I> is too. At any rate it's another novel in which the heroine shoots the hero.Laura Vivancohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00906661869372622821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-71894427133501094062008-03-08T17:06:00.000+00:002008-03-08T17:06:00.000+00:00I thought there was a twist in the Susan Napier bo...I thought there was a twist in the Susan Napier book and Roz got a humiliating comeuppance in the end. Wasn't she trying to reform her bad girl ways? And wasn't the hero only *apparently* nerdy?<BR/><BR/>Perhaps I'm confusing it with <I>Winter of Dreams</I> (Napier's book about Roz's twin sister, Olivia). In <I>WoD</I>, Jordan is a "tender brute". Olivia is a big personality with an impressive temper (though damped down by illness), but she's very quivery-feminine and illogical. I've enjoyed some Napier books, in part because the heroines have distinctive personalities, but I don't think of them as anything approaching femdom.<BR/><BR/>You've made me curious--I may have to re-read Roz's book.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-16781497210054800912008-03-08T16:22:00.000+00:002008-03-08T16:22:00.000+00:00Thanks, Tumperkin! I've cued them on my Paperback...Thanks, Tumperkin! I've cued them on my Paperback Swap list. I appreciate the recs.Sarah S. G. Frantzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12806353006812086825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-76245138929948452022008-03-08T16:13:00.000+00:002008-03-08T16:13:00.000+00:00I thought I'd left a comment previously but it app...I thought I'd left a comment previously but it appears that Blogger ate it.<BR/><BR/>It's not clear to me from your post whether you are looking for romances with heroines who have sexually dominant traits or if any kind of dominant traits will do.<BR/><BR/>If it's the latter, then there is a long history of 'managing' heroines: Austen's Emma, Heyer's Grand Sophy being two prime examples. There is often - though not always - a sense of the managing heroine yielding to the hero at the end though so that might not be what you're looking for. Managing heroines have dominant traits but they don't usually dominate the hero. They turn up a lot in 'meeting your match' storylines.<BR/><BR/>I would class Jessica Trent as a managing heroine rather than a dominant one. And I don't think I'd class the heroine (Daphne?) of Mr Impossible as either. <BR/><BR/>The fact that you give Lord of Scoundrels and Mr Impossible as examples makes me think that perhaps you are looking for books with more subtle overtones of dominance as well as those with overtly dominant heroines? <BR/><BR/>If so, I'd recommend you take a look at Charlotte Lamb's Obsession (1980). It's an interesting book in which the heroine feels a strong physical desire for the hero and the kind of possessiveness and jealousy that is more usually associated with Lamb's heroes. There is a definite power struggle between the hero and heroine in this book and the heroine does not win all the battles. She does, however, win the war and the hero is warned at the end that she'll 'never let him go'. <BR/><BR/>I second Sandra's recommendation of Vampire Lover - the only category romance I've ever read with an overtly female-dominant sex scene. <BR/><BR/>Another possible category author to look at is Susan Napier - she's written a few books in which the hero is a virgin and the heroine much more experienced. There is one in particular which I think might meet your criteria. I think it's called A Lesson In Seduction. The hero is nerdy and a virgin. The heroine is an actress who went through a promiscuous phase at one point in her life which resulted in her -I think - becoming infertile. It's a long time since I read this but I think the heroine is pretty dominant both in and out of the bedroom.Joanna Chambershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11008683032460114886noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-73412379114371417872008-03-08T08:18:00.000+00:002008-03-08T08:18:00.000+00:00I agree with Eric's description of Lydia Joyce's S...I agree with Eric's description of Lydia Joyce's <I>Shadows of the Night</I>. I'm sorry I didn't describe it more clearly on Dear Author (It is always tough to describe books when trying to avoid spoilers).<BR/><BR/>I agree that Rice's <I>Exit to Eden</I> is a femdom romance (a precursor of today's erotic romances) and a very good one, too.<BR/><BR/>You might also be interested in investigating Pam Rosenthal's novella, "A House East of Regent Steet" (it appeares in the anthology <I>Strangers of the Night</I>). The novella takes place in what used to be a house of ill repute, and as I recall, the hero asks the heroine to tie him to some contraption that was used for S/M sex. The heroine is definitely in the dominant position in that scene, which takes an unexpected turn.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-5578695387296538372008-03-07T23:59:00.000+00:002008-03-07T23:59:00.000+00:00I've not got any helpful suggestions to add becaus...I've not got any helpful suggestions to add because, like Sandra, I think I must be reading a different sub-set of romances or something. Or maybe I'm just not recognising "Non-BDSM Romances with Female Dominant characteristics" because I've just not been thinking of the heroines in those terms. I certainly wouldn't have thought of <I>Lord of Scoundrels</I> like that.<BR/><BR/>Thinking about this a bit more, it occurs to me that maybe you'd class Sandra's <I>Castle of the Wolf</I> as having somewhat female dominant characteristics, because the heroine is very determined and pursues the hero emotionally and sexually. She also defeats the villain.<BR/><BR/>That said, this week I've been reading a cache of Mills & Boon romances from the 1980s that I found in a second-hand shop. Admittedly it's a very small sample, and I've been reading them one after another, so perhaps that's made me more aware of the similarities, and perhaps it's that I've had thoughts about this thread drifting around in the back of my mind, but it seems to me that in almost all of them the hero has a lot of power compared to the heroine. Sometimes it's the bullying, punishing kiss type of power (in which case it's more pronounced than in the modern M&B Modern/Harlequin Presents line). But in others it's the situation where he just keeps pursuing her, until she gives in. Betty Neels's heroes are like that, and she wrote in this period (although her career spans decades). They're just very, very persistent heroes, in a relatively quiet sort of way. In addition, there are not infrequently accommodating male characters, either the insipid boyfriend who gets dropped by the heroine, or the "other man" who's less determined/sexually aggressive and pales in comparison with the hero.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, reading those books, and this thread, and another thread about <A HREF="http://aarboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=1246&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0" REL="nofollow">male protectiveness</A> that's been going on at AAR gives me the impression that there's a lack of female dominance (in the non-BDSM sense) and that it's tied in with ideas about masculinity and femininity.<BR/><BR/>However, I do know that in jay Dixon's book about Mills & Boon she said that in many of the romances written after the First World War there were more boyish heroes. In <BR/><BR/><I>Louise Gerard's </I>The Strange Young Man<I> [...] it is the heroine who is the mother-figure - she is the one who takes care of the hero, in this instance being employed by him as his bodyguard. In other books by the same author the heroine takes a more conventional maternal role, as for instance in </I>The Dancing Boy<I> [...] This book has an example of a hero who is the exact reverse of the alpha man - he is poor and not socially powerful, the illegitimate son of a Russian aristocrat and an English dancer, earning his living as a professional dance partner. The heroine, on the other hand, is middle-class, and training to be a doctor on a £1,000 annuity. The plot of this book also emphasizes the reversal of roles when the heroine rescues the hero from his murderous enemies.</I> (65).Laura Vivancohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00906661869372622821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-87113685201490290022008-03-07T21:24:00.000+00:002008-03-07T21:24:00.000+00:00Quick note to Barb...you're right. I DO write prim...Quick note to Barb...you're right. I DO write primarily from the male Dom, female sub p.o.v. In all my books the female is strong, but only two contain a woman that would be so strong as to be considered dominant.<BR/><BR/>:)Diana Hunterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09822908285490316742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-81850798810428323932008-03-07T19:32:00.000+00:002008-03-07T19:32:00.000+00:00Hmm, why do I get the impression that I'm reading ...Hmm, why do I get the impression that I'm reading vanilla romance? *g* But still, I thought of another novel that might fit: Vicki Lewis Thompson's ACTING ON IMPULSE: Trudy is new in the city and far from being a shy country girl. She is bent on seducing Linc and, if I remember correctly, takes very much the active and slightly aggressive part in their relationship. She stages several sexual fantasies for Linc: in the first she takes on the role of a servant girl and he is the master, but some nights later she is the princess and he her sex slave (well, naturally he gets tied to teh bed ...)Sandra Schwabhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15496019392789508611noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-12873370530946317432008-03-07T19:25:00.000+00:002008-03-07T19:25:00.000+00:00The Dara Joy reference reminds me of Wen Spencer's...The Dara Joy reference reminds me of Wen Spencer's A Brother's Price, but that's fantasy, of course. And also in the f/sf realm are the various books by Elisabeth Vonarburg.<BR/><BR/>VirginiaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-33978362551246070512008-03-07T17:53:00.000+00:002008-03-07T17:53:00.000+00:00Barbara B., Rough Canvas is very rough. Their fir...Barbara B., <I>Rough Canvas</I> is very rough. Their first scene together is just....wow. Well worth the read. And your comment about traditional sex roles is precisely what I'm trying to cover in my paper. Thanks for the recs!<BR/><BR/>And Deborah, I think I'll skip the Dara Joy! ;)Sarah S. G. Frantzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12806353006812086825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-84155295271435859892008-03-07T14:33:00.000+00:002008-03-07T14:33:00.000+00:00Oh, I had forgotten about this hideously bad book ...Oh, I had forgotten about this hideously bad book by Dara Joy called <I>Ritual of Proof</I>, which takes place in a faux-Regency world where the women are in charge ("she-dukes" and "she-earls"), and men have been genetically engineered to have some kind of hymen-equivalent which requires them to lose their virginity in terrible pain. Of course, it hardly counts as female-top BDSM, because Dara Joy being who she is, the heroine discovers that she is much happier when her ingenue husband turns all the female-topping customs of her world topsy-turvy and instead completely dominates her sexually.<BR/><BR/>I'm losing brain cells just remembering this book.<BR/><BR/>-DeborahAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-57956685122430401932008-03-07T06:35:00.000+00:002008-03-07T06:35:00.000+00:00Hmmm. There are a number of 70's/80s era westerns...Hmmm. There are a number of 70's/80s era westerns where the woman accepts a convict off the gallows to marry. Similarly, Woodiwiss' Shanna involves the privileged daughter hooked up with a convict/bondsman. Actual BDSM? No. Contrived situations where the woman holds some power over the man, yes.Nicola O.https://www.blogger.com/profile/13947359287796827837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-63380951122055159622008-03-07T03:32:00.000+00:002008-03-07T03:32:00.000+00:00I don't think any of Johnson's novels are overt. ...I don't think any of Johnson's novels are overt. But I do remember one or two historicals in which the overall dynamic definitely has the heroine in charge. (One with a younger man; maybe one in which she had a child, so that drives her decision making.) Those might not go as far as what you're looking for.<BR/><BR/>I'll try to remember titles for other erotic romances with different shadings of feminine dominance. (I won't say "femdom" in case that's a really specific term.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30203557.post-21030122812830370212008-03-07T03:06:00.000+00:002008-03-07T03:06:00.000+00:00Ooh, RfP, I've got Captivated. Thanks for remindi...Ooh, RfP, I've got <I>Captivated</I>. Thanks for reminding me! And most of the Susan Johnson--I never really considered any of them overtly femdom, though. Hrm.Sarah S. G. Frantzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12806353006812086825noreply@blogger.com