Sweet, Southern Belle, Cynthia Myers hasn't had it easy. Her family comes from old money, her father is a ruthless businessman and a heartless father. Her mother is equally cold-hearted, and her brother is a chip off the old block. After the fiasco of losing her fiance, her father has kicked her out of the family home and threatened to disown her. Rather than put up with the emotional and verbal abuse any longer, she leaves. Luckily she has her close friends, Anna and Max to rely on. At their wedding, she catches the eye of Max's best friend from college, Chris Dupree. There is something about him that makes her perk up and take notice.

Chris is a switch. He's a Dom and a Sub, with the right woman. When a previous sub couldn't handle being either a sub or a Domme, instead wanting to be a slave, he refused to give that to her and she left him. A few months later she committed suicide. Chris left the lifestyle behind suffering from his guilt at not having recognized her mental issues. One night with Cynthia has him thinking that she might be the one; the perfect match for him and his needs and desires. Can she shake off the years of torment at her family's hands, find her independence, herself and perhaps love?

We met Cynthia is the first book as the ex-fiancee of Max. Now she's back with her own story. The first page made me feel sorry for her in an instant. Her relationship with her father made her actions in the first book (almost) understandable. Here is a grown woman so beaten into submission (not physically), that to defy her father, even a little, is a huge deal. It was a foregone conclusion that finding herself is what would happen in this story. I also should have made the assumption that having been told what to do all her life would call out for her to do the exact opposite once she got a chance. Her turning into a Domme came a bit a s a surprise. I would have thought it would take a very long time before that happened.

Chris and Cynthia had excellent chemistry. It was intense and passionate. I can't say I bought her lightning fast turnaround from a fragile Magnolia to the sassy Domme, if you know what I mean. I just kept expecting her insecurities to resurface at any given moment and shatter the confidence she had gained. Maybe I've just been reading to many angsty stories **shrugs**. Anyway, it was really good, especially at the end with Evan thrown into the mix ;) ( )

Reviewer: Jen
Release Date: December 29th, 2008
Publisher: Samhain
Page Count: 232
Source: Provided by author for review
This is book 2 in Melissa's Harmless series. Cynthia was engaged to Max in book 1 and Chris is Max's best friend. This book opens with Max and Anna's wedding and Cynthia having just a little too much champagne after standing up to her father to attend the wedding. Cynthia decides she wants to rebel by having a one night stand with someone that her father would disapprove of, and Chris is the lucky guy.

Fair warning, this book does some exploring of Dominant/submissive relationship. Chris is a switch (meaning he enjoys playing both roles, which evidently is not common) and is looking for a mate who has similar interests and feels he's found that in Cynthia... but first he has to introduce her to the lifestyle.

The thing I enjoyed most about this book is watching Cynthia come out of her shell and grow from a debutant, bred to do what her parents ask of her to a woman confident in herself and her sexuality. Let's face it, Cynthia was a biotch in the first book; so to see her mature and come into her own was quite rewarding.

I'm very much forward to seeing where the next books in the series are going to go. And Melissa has written a free short story as an epilogue, A Harmless Little Kalikimaka. ( )

My, my, my. May I just say, "What a delicious cover"? And the rest of "A Little Harmless Pleasure" is every bit as good. Melissa Schroeder hit a home run for me with this second book in her 'Harmless' series. But this book is certainly not for the sweet romance reader, although the romance is very sweet. This book is about a journey into submission and dominance and includes scenes of oral, anal, and vaginal sex with one, two, and three participants. There are also scenes of light bondage; and all of these things are described in very open and frank terms. Of course, that's one of the things I LOVED about this book, but for some readers let this be their warning!

Cynthia is a society Southern belle and has always followed the rules of her cold, but socially prominent family. When an argument over attending the wedding of her ex-fiance results in her father kicking her out of the house, the seeds of rebellion are sown and Cynthia's growth begins. At the wedding, she meets the best man whose looks and body make her hot and bothered. After imbibing a bit too much champagne, Cynthia goes for broke and has a scorcher of a one-night stand with the best man! Little does she know, THIS best man has no intention of stopping at one night.

Chris is a switch, liking to both dominate and submit in the bedroom; but switches aren't very well received in the BDSM community. He's immediately taken with Cynthia's gorgeous southern looks and charm and allows her to seduce him. Before the night is over, Chris has the feeling that Cynthia is also a switch without realizing it as well as, just maybe, the one woman he's been looking for.

"A Little Harmless Pleasure" will suck you in from the first page. Both Cynthia and Chris are people you WANT to know and come to care about. The inside views of caring dominance and submission are extremely well written and I especially appreciated the emphasis Schroeder placed on the emotional side of the relationship. Many times, writers emphasize the BDSM more than the feelings and I think that pushes some readers away...but this story is really about the feelings and emotions of both people. For them, BDSM is just what makes them happy and satisfied in the bedroom...BOTH of them.

So for erotica readers who like feelings and romance, this is a book for you. For those who like BDSM, this is a book for you. For those who like a lot of sex, this is a book for you. Do I really need to continue? This book has just about everything an erotica reader could want and done so very well to boot! Now, of course, I can't wait for the next chapter in the 'Harmless' series and only hope it stars May and Evan! ( )