Whipped — I.J. Miller

Carla Peters is nearly immobilized by her empty, malaise-filled, affluent suburban lifestyle. No love in her life, strained relationships with both her daughter and second husband, Carla is desperate to move forward in some way, to connect to her family again, to find the intensity of love, to get off the Valium prescribed for her as a cure-all magic carpet. Carla's one salvation seems to be her strong, powerful alter ego: Mistress Domina … a leather-booted, stiletto-heeled sex goddess who discovers a talent for rendering men as vulnerable as she feels in real life. There's a sound in her house she can't identify, a knife in her tire, a forbidden videotape, deviant demands from an unknown stranger. Who is the stalker? Her second husband ... the bouncer at the brothel ... a client ... or any of the men she has depended on all her life who claim the right to control her? A handsome detective is hired to keep her safe. But he won't let her become dependent on him and insists she rely on herself. Their connection inspires a new sense of self-worth in Carla, opening the door for greater intimacy. Yet the stalker's deadly presence continues to block her way. Will she crumble, or rise up against him to complete her journey forward?