“Best Bondage Erotica 2011” is a Cleis Press novel edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel. This is its first year in publication. The book is a softcover book with black and white pages on the inside. In the 218 pages of this book, there are 20 different stories. The format of the book makes it really easy to read and really easy to revisit your favorite stories at a later date. The front cover shows a woman in a corset and thigh-high boots with her hands attached to a chain hanging from the ceiling. As you can guess, this doesn’t make the book the most discreet out there. However, if you keep the cover hidden, you can get away with reading it in public.
I was a bit disappointed by Best Bondage Erotica 2011. It wasn’t a bad book by far, but I just don’t feel like it measured up to some of the other bondage erotica books I’ve read in the past. It’s not a bad book by far though – it definitely includes some hot stories. I just wasn’t impressed by all of them. However, I didn’t dislike any of them either. They mostly just fell in the “okay” territory.
The stories are mostly heterosexual. There are a couple lesbian stories, but I don’t remember any gay stories. There are only the couple non-heterosexual stories though. Most of the stories are written from the submissive’s point-of-view, but Rachel did a great job of including a couple written from the Dominant’s point of views. Not all of the stories include penetration either. Some include penetration but others just include foreplay with the hands or mouths.
The bondage that is included varies as well. There are a couple stories about people who are first discovering bondage and trying it out for the first time. Other stories are about people who are bondage experts. Some stories just include basic handcuffs while other stories actually include mummification or a mermaid outfit. The book is really nice and really varied when it comes to the bondage type. It’s also very varied when it comes to the plot. Some of the stories cut straight to the sex while some of them actually give you a bit of lead-in to the different characters and their motivations. For the most part, though, the book does seem to focus on the sexual aspects instead of the plot aspects.
My favorite story was probably “Wired” by Lisabet Sarai. It’s a story about a woman who, after having a crush on a coworker who is ignoring her, chooses to hack his computer. She finds “questionable” internet history, and looking at it, finds herself face-to-face with femdom porn. Later that night, when she knows he’s going to be alone, she makes sure to go in and “make” that guy hers. It’s a very sexy story which even includes ethernet cables for bondage!
Another great story was “Do You See What I Feel?” by Teresa Noelle Roberts. A couple is having a blind friend over for dinner, so the boyfriend ties the girlfriend up in bondage and puts a dress over the bondage to hide it. However, it turns out he was “tricking” her, and as the blind man goes to feel out what she looks like, he discovers the rope, and everything turns kinky.
Another good story was “Relative Anonymity” by Emerald. In this story, a husband and wife divorce after realizing that their love is not a lover’s love. The husband finds a boyfriend and invites the ex-wife over to watch the two of them play together. Of course, it’s kinky play.
Rachel Kramer Bussel did a great job of editing Best Bondage Erotica 2011. I felt like it wasn’t quite as erotic as other bondage anthologies I’ve read, but I enjoyed it none the less. It included some great plot lines, and if you enjoy bondage, you’ll enjoy reading this book. Thanks to Rachel Kramer Bussel for sending it out to me for review.
