Concentration Play by Katherine McIntyre

Rating: 4
Steam: 3
PoV: dual, 3rd person
Series: Leather and Lattes #5
Genre: contemporary romance, BDSM, MM
Tropes / tags: hurt / comfort, mental health, found family


I loved being back at Whipped – I just adore this found family! James and Nolan’s story was exactly what I had been hoping for, with plenty of sweetness, emotions and kinky scenes!

I’d been looking forward to this pairing, and their chemistry was great right from the beginning. There was a bit of close proximity and matchmaking going on, but Nolan and James were also naturally drawn to each other. The dynamic and feelings developed very naturally between them, but they had some things they needed to work through.

They both had some insecurities, Nolan had OCD and people hadn’t always been understanding about it. James was still grieving the loss of his husband and he was feeling guilty about moving on. They were great for each other though, it was sweet to see the support and understanding they shared, and how they started to heal together. It got emotional at times, and I loved the moments of vulnerability and hurt / comfort between them.

The two of them also had a lot of support from the staff and regulars at Whipped, and I always love spending time with this found family. Play nights are always fun to read about, and I really enjoyed seeing Nolan and James scene together. I loved the impact play – there were a lot of hot scenes in this one, and James was fantastic at giving Nolan what he needed. Their romance was overall sweet and low angst, but there were some outside factors that added some tension and angst to their story.

Concentration Play was an excellent addition to the series – James and Nolan’s romance was definitely worth the wait! It only took a few chapters for me to get engrossed in this one, and I could barely put it down. I definitely recommend checking out this series if you enjoy character focused stories with great written kink and found family!


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