The Marriage Counselor Book One:Jase and Ally's Story

Jason and Allison Armstrong started dating in high school. They wrote letters during his five years in the army and while she finished college. When they finally married, there should have been no surprises. Yet, here they are, eight years and two children later, and they can't be in the same room together. They need help. Or they'll be heading for a divorce. Jase contacts a marriage counselor recommended by an acquaintance. Dr. Archer has some very different methods. Instead of mediated arguments with his wife, Jase spends time one-on-one with the counselor, setting goals, learning new skills, discovering how to be the head of the house. Ally has a lot to learn, as well. And to help her stay on track, failures are dealt with swiftly and painfully, over Dr. Archer's knee for a good, old-fashioned spanking. Join Ally in part one of this three-part series, as she learns to fulfill her wedding vows, to love, honor, and obey her husband... or else!

This story provides an interesting look at how DD can save a marriage. I liked that this book brought a couple that never practiced DD before into the lifestyle. You got the unique perspective of watching them both deal with the emotions of a new way to live. I did not, however, like the marriage counselor too much. He came off as patronizing and condescending. He takes this know-it-all approach while dishing out advice before listening to the couples’ situation. I also did not like the way in which he started to spank the wife. I think this could have been written in a way to make it seem necessary, therapeutic, and hot. But instead, it came off as arrogant. There was one scene that I thought was particularly good at the end of the book. Jase comes home after a long day’s work expecting to have a romantic night with his wife as they had planned (which is a special occasion that doesn’t happen too often with two children). He was surprised and disappointed to find her in a cleaning frenzy making more of a mess than anything else: ************************* Jase was fuming. She was every bit as disrespectful as the children! He had been looking forward to this romantic dinner all day! Without thinking, Jase unbuckled his belt, pulling it out of the belt loops. The action was not lost on Ally. Her eyes widened. "I'm sorry, Jase," she said quickly, taking a step back. "I really didn't mean to! I'll hurry up!" He took her by the arm and pushed her down over the kitchen table. It was too late for apologies. Swiftly he cracked his folded belt over her rounded bottom, clad only in a thin pair of nylon panties. Again and again he swung, the anger left but resentment filled its place. Ally had defied him... didn't she love him anymore? Why were they seeing this marriage counselor, if it didn't mean anything? Ally was crying, but she was not resisting him. Jase had no idea how many times he had struck her. Dark red marks covered the tops of her thighs and above the panty line. He threw his belt down on the table and pulled her into his arms. She clung to him, her tears soaking through his shirt. "Sh, I'm sorry," Jase whispered, ashamed of himself. "I'm sorry," Ally sobbed. "I'm so sorry, Jase!" He lifted her in his arms and carried her to bed, where he lay down with her. She curled into his shoulder and clung to him until she cried herself to sleep. Jase stayed with her, watching her soft inhales, the way she still quivered. At the moment she looked so young and defenseless. He wanted to protect her and to love her; he felt a surge of humility that she had chosen to marry him. ************************* My enjoyment of the scene was slightly spoiled by the fact that Jase went on to berate himself for losing control and spanking his wife in anger. They discussed it the next morning and it seemed like Jase needed Ally to reassure him that she was okay with him spanking her. It was interesting to see Jase’s emotions, but it was disappointing as well. I guess I just like it better when dominant men are strong and stoic. The other thing that I most definitely did not like about this book was that the majority of the spankings involved Ally and Jase's children. While this did not come off as abusive, it diminished the appeal of the story in my opinion. Spanking in fiction is for pleasure - and there is really no place for children in that for me. I don't think I would really recommend this book. There were certainly elements about the book that I enjoyed, but overall I did not think it was a great spanking novel.