(nb: I received an Advance Review Copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley)

One night, while waiting for her porn to load, Suzanne Kim tires of surfing the gossip sites, and just on a lark checks her Kinklife site. Suzanne had been exposed to one part of the BDSM (Bondage, Domination, Sadism, Masochism) scene before. Her previous lover, Laurel, had been great about doling out pain, but the rest of the affair wasn’t emotionally satisfying. Since Laurel, Suzanne had avoided Kinklife. Tonight, she craved something a bit more nurturing, so she was looking for a “Mommy dom.”

First things first. There are different subgroups within the BDSM world. Many people automatically assume it’s all about the cat-of-nine-tails and leather masks with zippers. It’s not. Sure, there are those who enjoy being tied up with clamps attached to sensitive parts. Some groups are about all the leather and latex, ropes and whips and chains (oh, my!).

The Mommy-dominant seeks a woman a few years younger whom they treat as a child. Sometimes, this partner can play an infant—diapers, breastfeeding, and all. To others, the toddler phase is more appealing. In Suzanne’s case, she wanted a Mommy who would treat her like a little girl. There can be varying amounts of pain and punishment within each relationship, depending on how spicy the two participants like it. Keep in mind that boundaries are set up front, and typically there are times for “straight talk,” conversations where the “game” is paused, and the two adults converse as equals.

When she looked through her Kinklife account, Suzanne found a beautiful woman who called herself Mami-P. Suzanne took a chance, and soon Little Suzy and Mami-P were together. Suzanne relished being doted over by Pilar—sorry, Mami-P isn’t her real name (Though it would be hella coincidental, no?)—and suffered her occasional spankings with lustful tears. Suzanne loved knowing that she could be grown-up, marketing genius Suzanne, when beneath her suit she was wearing little girl panties, and waiting to go home to be Suzy again.

Pilar and Suzanne grew closer still; they fell in love. Then one weekend, Suzanne was terrified, as Suzanne-world and Suzy-world—her professional and personal lives—collided. Suzanne’s head spun with the realization that either or BOTH of her carefully constructed worlds might soon collapse into rubble.

I loved “At Her Feet.” The book works on a number of levels. For some readers, it could serve as an entry into gay society—in addition to Suzanne and Pilar, Suzanne’s best friend is a gay man, who is neither a Daddy nor a dom. Also, this could certainly introduce the reader to the BDSM world, specifically the parent-figure-dominant/child-submissive relationship.

The important thing is the most basic, that “At Her Feet” paints a wonderful story about two women falling in love. While “the lifestyle” was the catalyst through which they met, Suzanne and Pilar have a definite personal chemistry that defies kink. I’ve had plenty of relationships where either I or my girlfriend needed more nurturing than the other. In “At Her Feet,” the nurture-imbalance is the same. It’s just handled within a different rule structure.

I loved the way author Rebekah Weatherspoon allowed Suzanne to grow more comfortable being Suzy. At the core, Suzy wasn’t necessarily supposed to act like an eight-year-old every minute, whining and begging for ice cream every time they went out. The Suzy part of Suzanne had to learn to trust that her Mami-P had her best interests at heart. The childlike trust was more important than the sex.

Not to say there isn’t a good amount of sex here—there is—but it doesn’t come off as being gross or inappropriate. The lovemaking didn’t mimic an adult and a child, but two adults, one of whom was more dominant. I mean, I wouldn’t recommend it to my mom’s Presbyterian Women’s Group Reading Circle by any stretch, but I don’t see how anyone who’s read the plot summary could be shocked.

“At Her Feet” is not the easiest book to review, for not every reader has the same background. Not everyone understands the LGBT world; not all LGBT’s understand BDSM, and not all BDSM’s get the whole parent-dom/child-sub role-playing thing. Ms Weatherspoon’s writing provides sufficient explanation without being overly aggressive and trying to drown poor innocent newbies in a bucket of crazy sex and lifestyle options. (Hell, that’s a bucket I’d rather like to peek into, to be honest)

“At Her Feet” is a smart, loving book about two smart, loving people who simply differ from the majority on what constitutes “normal.” The beautiful part—to me, at least—is that those idiots who would decry this book or its subject matter have probably walked by one of these couples in the supermarket, and never even noticed it.

“Different” isn’t always bad. In “At Her Feet,” “different” sparkles as a thing of true beauty.

Very Highly Recommended