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Review: Haven, by: Rebekah Weatherspoon
Jan. 7th, 2021 10:10 pmI have this thing I call the Kugel Habit. It's where I try foods that I don't like until I like them. It has worked on nearly every food I don't like, so long as it's not a texture problem.
I can be that way with books. Which is to say, I tried this book knowing that it was an erotic contemporary, neither a subgenre I particularly enjoy, because I figure sooner or later I can get my brain on board. I also liked that it was an OwnVoices novel and Weatherspoon has gotten a ton of good buzz. The premise sounded interesting and dark enough to grab my attention.
I'm going to say Weatherspoon is not the author for me. This is one of those times where I recognize that lots of people really liked this book, and as such, it is probably a quirk of my own preferences. I'm guessing this is my I-don't-equate-sex-with-intimacy block on this one.
Basic premise: Shep, our male protag, lives on a mountain in remote NoCal. The book opens with him saving our female protag, Claudia's, life, from a serial murderer. She's been on the mountain camping with her brother. It's an action-packed opening. Shep takes Claudia, who's pretty roughed up, down the mountain and to the hospital. They see each other one more time before she heads back to NY, where she is from, has a boyfriend and a job and a life. She does not leave him any contact information, just a note thanking him.
Months later, she goes back to CA, having quit her job, broken up with her bf (who, admittedly, did not seem like the right fit for her) and stopped going to her therapist. Instead, after she loses her shit about the fact that he didn't search for her--which he RIGHTLY points out would be stalking, and she, at least, has the grace to admit he is correct--they make the decision to spend a week together enacting D/s play.
This is pretty early on, and all I can think is a) this chick needs waaaay more therapy, b) there are so many ways this is a bad idea that it's actually hard for me to quantify. I mean, if nothing else, NOTHING else, the first question out of his mouth when she agrees to submit, even though it's clear she's a masochist, should be "what are your limits?" Probably, "is it possible there are triggers now that weren't there before what happened?"
But, okay, sure. She ends up spending three days? Four? With him. They don't really talk much. They have a lot of sex. Take some walks. She has some panic attacks. They have a deeply uncomfortable dinner with his sort-of-kind-of parental figures. And then she gets a call about a potential job and has to leave that moment and get on a plane.
She's gone for another four months wherein, on the plus side, she gets herself back in therapy, takes the job, re-establishes her life. She does not, however, at any point, call Shep, have a discussion with him, or even email or text. Nor does he contact her. Instead, when she decides she's ready, she blows back into town, tells him she wants to marry him and he's basically like "yup, sounds good", and that is where the book ends.
I...am not sure why these people like each other? Or that they even really know each other? As far as I can tell they have very little in common, they don't know much about each other's values or ethics, only know a surface amount about each other's pasts and family's, basically, I'm pretty sure that the the words, "I love you," mean, "your breasts are really nice."
Sometimes I honestly think I've read a different book than everyone else.
I can be that way with books. Which is to say, I tried this book knowing that it was an erotic contemporary, neither a subgenre I particularly enjoy, because I figure sooner or later I can get my brain on board. I also liked that it was an OwnVoices novel and Weatherspoon has gotten a ton of good buzz. The premise sounded interesting and dark enough to grab my attention.
I'm going to say Weatherspoon is not the author for me. This is one of those times where I recognize that lots of people really liked this book, and as such, it is probably a quirk of my own preferences. I'm guessing this is my I-don't-equate-sex-with-intimacy block on this one.
Basic premise: Shep, our male protag, lives on a mountain in remote NoCal. The book opens with him saving our female protag, Claudia's, life, from a serial murderer. She's been on the mountain camping with her brother. It's an action-packed opening. Shep takes Claudia, who's pretty roughed up, down the mountain and to the hospital. They see each other one more time before she heads back to NY, where she is from, has a boyfriend and a job and a life. She does not leave him any contact information, just a note thanking him.
Months later, she goes back to CA, having quit her job, broken up with her bf (who, admittedly, did not seem like the right fit for her) and stopped going to her therapist. Instead, after she loses her shit about the fact that he didn't search for her--which he RIGHTLY points out would be stalking, and she, at least, has the grace to admit he is correct--they make the decision to spend a week together enacting D/s play.
This is pretty early on, and all I can think is a) this chick needs waaaay more therapy, b) there are so many ways this is a bad idea that it's actually hard for me to quantify. I mean, if nothing else, NOTHING else, the first question out of his mouth when she agrees to submit, even though it's clear she's a masochist, should be "what are your limits?" Probably, "is it possible there are triggers now that weren't there before what happened?"
But, okay, sure. She ends up spending three days? Four? With him. They don't really talk much. They have a lot of sex. Take some walks. She has some panic attacks. They have a deeply uncomfortable dinner with his sort-of-kind-of parental figures. And then she gets a call about a potential job and has to leave that moment and get on a plane.
She's gone for another four months wherein, on the plus side, she gets herself back in therapy, takes the job, re-establishes her life. She does not, however, at any point, call Shep, have a discussion with him, or even email or text. Nor does he contact her. Instead, when she decides she's ready, she blows back into town, tells him she wants to marry him and he's basically like "yup, sounds good", and that is where the book ends.
I...am not sure why these people like each other? Or that they even really know each other? As far as I can tell they have very little in common, they don't know much about each other's values or ethics, only know a surface amount about each other's pasts and family's, basically, I'm pretty sure that the the words, "I love you," mean, "your breasts are really nice."
Sometimes I honestly think I've read a different book than everyone else.
