In this second book of Anne Rice's adaptation of Sleeping Beauty our heroine is caught in a web of her own twisted desires for more experiences when she learns of the existence of "the village". This is a lovely picturesque village where "bad" or "naughty" slaves are sent for further punishment and training. These slaves have been found unworthy of palace life and are kept for a number of years by freemen and women as complete slaves. The princes and princesses are used as laborers and menial workers while also being subjected to any twisted sexual desire their new Masters and Mistresses can devise. There is only one safe guard, the slaves cannot be permanently scarred physically.

This book delves into the more mundane day to day existence of a body slave and introduces the concept of the human pony through Tristan's experiences. There is a much more heavy emphasis on male-male sex and group sex. I found it fascinating how she wrapped genuine affection into the whole slave Master relationship, still having said that most of the scenes of bondage amount to torture and still don't fit the safe, sane, and consensual creed of the BDSM counter-culture.

There are scenes describing the "stable" life that are thought provoking, at least for me, about how men would act if their humanity were stripped away and they were left to fight for dominance. Ms. Rice seeks to blend actual horse society into human pony society which makes for an interesting comparison. She also blends the absolute cruelty of a hard nosed Master/Mistress with more tender moments where these men and ladies are allowed to show their gentle sides making you feel more for the main characters as they struggle to confront their mixed feelings. This fact made this book much more satisfying a read than the first one for me. The punishments for runaways described by the author made me cringe but at the same time were tantalizing if a bit over the top.

This is my favorite book of the trilogy as the scenes seem to flow better and be less flowery than the first book. It is a pretty little village but still gritty and work-a-day. This book is a work of fiction and isn't in any way an accurate depiction of true bondage and submission relationships. All in all a worthwhile read and I definitely recommend it.

The second book in the series is still my favorite and is now quite dog eared! The scenes are raw and sensual and definitely not safe for home play! Fantasy like this is a great place to visit and perhaps spend an afternoon daydreaming.