Joint Review: Bad Behavior by K.A. Mitchell
Publisher: Samhain
Publish Date: December 16, 2014
Reviewed by: MinnChica & Heller
How we got this book: E-Arc from Publisher
Bad in Baltimore #5
“In a life full of yes, no is the sexiest word he’s ever heard.
David Beauchamp might as well be in jail. After one too many misunderstandings with the law, he’s chained to the city by the GPS and alcohol sensor strapped to his ankle. Awaiting trial, cut off from usual forms of entertainment, he goes looking for a nameless sexual encounter and winds up with almost more than he can handle.
Reality comes crashing back the next day with a summons for another random drug test, and the man behind the badge turns out to be the very man who took him for one hell of a ride.
Probation Officer Tai Fonoti is used to handling other people’s problems, but he’s horrified when one of the clients his boss dumps on him is the sweet piece of ass he screwed the night before. It makes getting a urine sample a pretty loaded situation.
That single encounter left Beach craving Tai’s unique brand of control and discipline. But while Tai relishes laying down the law in the bedroom, the letter of the law stands between them and kinkily ever after.
Warning: This book is kinky. I mean kinky. With lots of sex. It describes a fully consensual, intense D/s relationship which changes a character’s life. It includes impact play and bondage along the way to a very happily ever after. ”
Heller: The Bad in Baltimore series has been a bit of a rollercoaster for me. I loved Eli and Quinn and my love of those characters has carried me through the ups and downs in the rest of the books. I went into this read disliking Beach…a hardcore dislike of his actions and his personality. I was curious if Mitchell could turn him around into a person that I could care about. Turn him around she did. I may not love David/Beach like I do Eli but I understand him now.
MinnChica: For some reason, I thought I was completely caught up on this series, but as I was reading I realized that I’m really not. I’m a few books behind, so some of the secondary characters were new-to-me, and the introduction to Beach’s backstory (that I can only assume happened during an earlier book) was something I missed. However, I never felt like I was TOO out of the loop to enjoy the story.
Heller: This story is about a Domestic Discipline (DD) relationship between David and Tai. I’ve read quite a few DD stories and that was the main reason with why I chose to read this book after DNFing the previous book in this series. It had a lot more sex than other DD books I’ve read (not a bad thing) but I enjoyed reading the DD dynamic that the men settled into quite a bit. David was very much a brat and that came across so well.
MinnChica: I’m a big fan of BDSM books, I’m also a huge Mitchell fan, so getting the chance to read yet another take on a full time BDSM relationship was great. I loved the way the romance and chemistry worked between David and Tai. Had they not met in the bar, I think I would have struggled more with the story, especially given Tai’s job and close proximity to David’s case. However, I found that as the story progressed, I cared less about that conflict of interest and more about how perfectly they fit together in terms of their relationship.
Heller: What I didn’t like about this read. David had a lot of issues. He’s done everything in excess with little to no consequence for his actions: drinking, drugs, sex. His DD relationship with Tai happens extremely fast and really comes across as a panacea. I could really see that giving control to Tai helped him tremendously in focusing his life but we seldom saw him work at changing it beyond what was happening in the bedroom. It was talked about but never really shown so these sweeping changes seemed to come to David like most things in his life, effortlessly and I think that did a disservice to his struggle.
Most everyone in this book put David down. Not that he didn’t deserve it for the things that he’s done but it got a bit tiring when character after character ripped into him. We never really find out what happened the night he jumped. It was a blackout for him and I thought that was too bad that it was glossed over.
Also, Tai being a parole officer seemed almost an excuse for an interesting meet cute. We have one office scene and David never sets foot in there again. We never get to see him and his new PO interact at all and while that kept the story telling tight it didn’t seem realistic to never see David deal with his restrictions in more than a cursory way.
MinnChica: I have to agree with Heller that David was one seriously screwed up guy. The poor man never had to deal with the negative consequences of his actions, and it showed in his entitled attitude. However, I thought the way his character grew and changed and became aware of the world around was wonderful to see. I liked that he had to earn back the trust of his friends, and that they didn’t treat him with kid gloves when it came to growing up. I thought that was real and true and although it forced David to struggle throughout the book, I think it really helped him become the stronger character he ended up being. I also would have liked to see more about the night David jumped, as well.
Heller: What I liked. The DD relationship REALLY worked for me. Tai is a great Dom, strong but he never comes across as a caricature. He’s a man who needs to take care of people, which he does on a daily basis but he needs a sub to be whole just as David needs to be that submissive. The sex between the two men is so very hot and the dynamic works both when they’re in a scene and just the day to day interactions.
MinnChica: All in all, I liked this one. There were some things that didn’t work for me, the rush of the D/s relationship and how quickly it got super serious, and how reluctant both David and Tai were with sharing their feelings about it. However, the way the relationship progressed and was handled was beautiful and so well done that I was able to look past a lot of that. Mitchell continues to be one of my favorite m/m writers, and I’m always anxious to see what she releases next.
I give Bad Behavior a C+
Heller: I agree with Minn about the rush of the D/s relationship but it was a gorgeous one. I would have liked to see David struggle more with his responsibilities but I have to say that once I settled in and got past my initial dislike of him from previous books I really enjoyed this read. Mitchell wants to know who we’d like to see get married first? Eli and Quinn please.
I give Bad Behavior a B