Rating: 4 Stars

Publisher: Self-Published

Genre:  Dark Gay Romance/MM Age Play

Tags: Daddy/little Morally Grey, Kidnapping, Power Imbalance, Non-Con

Length: 324 Kindle Pages

Reviewer: Kazza

Purchase At:  amazon

Blurb:

Charlie Palmer was only supposed to stay for an hour.

Color a picture. Watch a movie. Pretend he wasn’t falling apart.

Instead, he fell asleep… and woke up in the arms of a man who decided he belonged to him.

Nikolaus Makris doesn’t do temporary.

He doesn’t do casual.

And when he finds Charlie alone in the littles’ room—soft, hurting, and unprotected—he makes a decision that will change both their lives forever.

Charlie thinks he’s being taken.

Nikolaus knows he’s being rescued.

Too bad Charlie hasn’t realized it yet.

But Nikolaus is patient.

And very, very good at taking care of what’s his.

Hush, little baby… you’re home now.

A dark MM age-play romance featuring a possessive Daddy, forced proximity, emotional caretaking, and a vulnerable little who never expected to be chosen.

Review: 

I’ve never read age play or big/little stories previously. I’ve read Daddy kink but not at all like the context in this book. I’m probably not going to be jumping into a lot of these types of books. But hey, it’s good to have read one. I came to this book off the back of a promise of a possessive MC, one of my fictional faves, and it delivered that. I also wanted to see how a chronic condition was dealt with in this kind of kink space. 

So, basically, Nikolaus is a bad guy. Greek Mafia. I didn’t know that was a thing… why not? He stumbles across a club that has a ‘little’ room and it’s here he and his offsider, Constantine, spot Charlie. Nikolaus is interested but he can be recklessly impulsive.  

He nods his head toward the sleeping boy. “Just… why don’t we watch him for a while? Don’t get too excited over just a look. I don’t want to have to clean up his remains if he isn’t what you think.”
He’s right.

So, you know, Nik kidnaps a preverbal-state Charlie from a club Charlie frequents. He is in no state to give consent and Nikolaus isn’t looking for it either. To be clear, Charlie is twenty-five turning twenty-six. He’s an adult but he is also a little. He’s also a ‘chronic,’ meaning the moniker a lot of people give to themselves when they have chronic illness or they have frustratingly undiagnosed conditions that make them frequently fatigued, in pain, with nerve signal issues, brain fog, depression/depressive bouts, etc, etc – think fibromyalgia, CF, MCAS, or ME. Or anything that gets put into the too hard box by the medical world. 

I grab the edge of the counter, breathing through it, waiting for my body to decide it’s done punishing me for… whatever I did this time. Standing too long? Not eating enough? Eating the wrong thing? Who knows? That’s the problem. I close my eyes.

Charlie sees himself as unlovable, he has health issues, stretch marks from weight that has yoyoed, a tummy, and a lack of friends. He’d like to be cared for. Not necessarily needing a kidnapping, but, you know, this is a dark age play book, so there’s that.

No one stopped us.
No one saved me.
Or maybe, horribly, they saw me tucked in Nikolaus’s arms, freshly bathed, one hand gripping his shirt, blankie trapped between my chest and his, and thought I already looked saved.

And Nik’s a tad crazy when his guards manhandle Charlie back into his suite when he tries to escape. Again, Nik is not a nice man but, sociopathy aside, he cares about Charlie and no one is going to touch what’s his. There’s that possessive obsessive element that I know is nutz but I have a soft spot for-    

I’ll cut off each of your filthy fingers that touched him and make you swallow them before I blow your brains out.

You didn’t mean it like that? Like what, motherfuckers? Like I’m watching you assault someone who belongs to me? I’ll enjoy killing you.

Until that little room, Nik had all but given up on finding a boy who is sweet enough, caring enough, not just playing at what Nik wants. He’s not averse to using his wealth to help Charlie get the best medical care because he knows his boy is unwell and has been been neglected. And, of course, Charlie wants that underneath his foggy, tired, kidnapped state. Having to survive without medical insurance and ill health. No one to support him. It’s understandably weighed him down. A Daddy would be nice but can he trust this man who has taken him away from his home and the semblance of a life he had there? Yes. The answer is yes. Because dark romance. Clearly I was here for the morally bankrupt vibe but the author put their foot to the floor and delivered what was promised. Is the book healthy? No. Does it pretend to be? Again, no.  

Nikolaus is a man who knows what he wants-

It’s not that bondage doesn’t interest me, because it does. But I don’t want an experienced rope bunny or masochist. I want an innocent, sweet baby boy who’ll cry so prettily for me as I tie him up and push a pacifier gag between his trembling lips. He’d be so unsure and nervous, maybe even a little scared…
Fuck.

He also showers Charlie with everything he needs, including being able to be a little who is not embarrassed by his kink. Nik will gladly put Charlie on his lap and dress him how he likes being dressed and fuck anyone who says anything detrimental. Of course, Nikolaus has his own kink of being a Daddy. He’s also older than Charlie at forty-three. There is a chronological age difference as well as their play dynamic. There is also a power imbalance because Nikolaus is who he is and Charlie is who he is. It suits the story and it suits their play. I’ll also mention that Charlie’s condition doesn’t get fixed. There is no magic cure but there is recognition that Charlie is unwell. It’s not just in his head. 

Hush, Little Baby delivers what it promises – a dark, morally grey, non-con (eventually consensual) age play book. I’ve made sure to give any potential reader plenty of quotes to get an idea of the writing style. If you like the idea of a billionaire (very) bad boy sweeping in and pulling the other MC out from the drudgery and sadness of their life, this book gives that to you. If you also like a dual POV, a tiny speedhump for some drama, this book gives you that. If you don’t mind some Daddy and big/little play, some tears shed, some non-verbal moments, a possessive MC, this could be for you. It’s 4 Stars for me.