Reviewed by Jen B.

TITLE:  Saving Alexander
AUTHOR: Susan Mac Nicol
PUBLISHER: Boroughs Publishing Group
LENGTH: 89,000 words
BLURB: Famous author though he may be, Alexander Montgomery is not someone you take home to meet your mother.  Seriously flawed, damaged by a horrific past, he’s trying hard to claw his way back to normality.  But how can anyone respect what he truly is?  His therapy involves regular sessions at Study in Scarlet, an exclusive S&M club.

Then comes Sage.  Tall, with black hair and blue eyes, an up-and-coming actor with impossible charm and boy-next-door good looks, he’s the perfect choice to play the leading man in a TV adaptation of Alex’s latest best-seller.  Even more, he is a man you introduce to your family.  Which Alex would do—if he weren’t taken by another man who offers the punishments Alex prays will wipe away the past and make him the person he wants to be.  Yet, perhaps there is another path to redemption.  If only the solution would reach out and touch him.

REVIEW:

Alex is a damaged soul.  His past has left him scarred in many ways, and in order to cope with that, as well as to somewhat self-punish, he pays for extreme S&M sessions, though he has strict guidelines about what can and cannot happen during them.  He has been seeing the same dom, Eric, for about two years.  This is the main reason Alex does not believe he will ever be able to be relationship material.  How can he possibly ask someone to have a relationship with him when he needs to see Eric on a regular basis?

Then, when Alex’s book is ready to become a TV series, he meets Sage, the actor on which Alex has actually based the book’s main character.  They immediately hit it off, but Alex keeps Sage somewhat at a distance until Sage sees evidence of Alex’ other activities and slowly everything comes to light.  Poor Alex was fighting his attraction to Sage afraid of it colliding with his other secret life.  Despite the mixed signals, Sage didn’t give up.

I was really glad that I didn’t have to wait very long to find out about Alex’ past.  While it isn’t all told at once, there is enough for you to understand and really feel for Alex and his issues, and the rest of the details are spaced throughout the story.

Sage is wonderful, and even after finding out about Alex’ issues, decides he wants to be with him.  He works hard to be understanding on what Alex has gone through and his continual need for such drastic therapy.  It isn’t easy for him to share Alex with Eric, even after Alex changes the sessions by eliminating first the harsh treatment and then actual sex.  Alex is trying, little by little, to wean himself off his need for the S&M.  Unfortunately, Eric doesn’t take that so well, as it seems he has gotten quite attached to Alex and their sessions.  You get the idea early on that Eric will be a problem, and he is not a nice guy really at any point.

There is a bit of mystery going on when things start happening to other cast members, all seeming to be taking plays from Alex’s book, adding another level of interesting.  Alex and Sage are wonderful together, and I really didn’t want to put this story down.  I loved watching Sage help Alex through his recovery, even though he has a long way to go.  This well-written story had many elements that hit my buttons, and with this being the second book I’ve read by Ms. Mac Nicol, she has quickly been moved to my auto read list.

Jen rates it –

BUY LINKS: Boroughs Publishing :: Smashwords

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Jennifer B. is one of the official reviewers on The Blog of Sid Love.

To read all her reviews, click the link: JENNIFER B’S REVIEWS
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