becoming sirRating: 3.75 stars
Buy Links: 
 Amazon | All Romance
Length: Novella


Becoming Sir reunites us with Tom and Isaac, a couple in the early stages of exploring a Dom/sub lifestyle.  Several months ago, Tom expressed an interest in being dominated by Isaac and taking some of their kinky play and turning it into a more formal D/s arrangement.  At first Isaac was uncertain about his role as a Dom, especially since Tom is much younger than him.  But since that time the two have really embraced the experience and Isaac is becoming more sure and confident about being a Dom and bringing Isaac pleasure as a sub.

Although the guys have been playing regularly at home, Isaac is still wary about making their lifestyle more public and interacting with other people who are into BDSM.  But when he sees an ad for a new club that seems to offer a lot of privacy, he decides this might be the right time to try taking things out of their home and into a place where they can try new things and socialize with others.  The new experience is one that makes him nervous, but is also something that is an important step forward for both he and Tom.

This is the third book in the Calling the Shots series and I continue to really like the set up and overarching plot behind the series.  When we first meet the men, Tom has just expressed interest in a BDSM relationship and Isaac is sort of taken aback.  He has never really contemplated any kind of formal arrangement or taking their kink to the next level in this way.  He worries about being so much older than Tom (there is about a 20-year gap between them) and the idea of being an older man dominating his younger partner. But he also loves Tom and sees how much Tom wants and needs this, so together they begin to explore the lifestyle. And as they do, Isaac realizes how much he enjoys it as well and how suited both men are to these roles.  So I love the themes presented here, the age difference, the early explorations into kink and BDSM.  And that is definitely what keeps me coming back to this series.  I am really intrigued by the dynamic between these two men and how are they finding their way through this all together.

I think where I struggle somewhat is with the author’s writing style. Instead of working feelings or ideas into the story seamlessly, they are often sort of dumped in with a lot of exposition. Mostly this is when we are getting an explanation about something BDSM related, or when we are learning Tom’s feelings as the non-POV character.   As a result it often feels either like an information dump or like Isaac is telling Tom what Tom is feeling, and they seem to talk in a very stilted and unnatural way.  For example here they are talking about scene:

“Good boy, doing your best to submit to me. It has taken me several months, but I think you’re finally close to beginning to understand what submission means. Simply doing what I tell you is only the start. Trust is a given, but it doesn’t tell the whole story.”

The explanation is for the reader not really for Tom, and it seems odd to think that Isaac and Tom would actually talk this way to each other in the middle of a scene. I noted this in both my previous reviews, and while it isn’t as big an issue here, it is still something that happens frequently enough that the writing doesn’t always feel completely natural.

My only other issue here is that I felt some confusion on Isaac’s motivation to go to the club.  The story starts out introducing the fact that Tom has been down lately because the book he is writing keeps being rejected.  Isaac is looking for a way to help him through this process and provide the support and security Tom needs.  Then he sees the ad for the club and decides to try it out. But I wasn’t really clear if this was cause and effect – Isaac seeks out the club to help Tom deal with his issues. Or if this was unrelated.  We never really see a connection between the club and Tom’s feelings about his writing career, so if they are linked, not enough of a connection is made. And if they are supposed to be separate things, I am not sure what happened to that plot thread about the book because it is not really resolved.

Despite my issues, I am continuing to enjoy this series.  Dora has created a really interesting couple in Tom and Isaac and I am really intrigued by their journey.  I think there is a lot of potential here and I am curious to see how things continue to develop (assuming there is more to come for these guys). So while I have had some problems with the writing, I am finding this an enjoyable series that I would like to continue.

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