Please see the full press release below my review of the book.
I’ll admit I have selfish reasons for reviewing this book, the topic of children being abused by pedophiles is of personal interest to me. In case that got you wondering, I was not abused as a child. But between that and this book being touted as “The Real Fifty Shades of Grey,” I thought it might be of interest to the fans of Fifty Shades of Grey. I also thought that some of the Mom’s and Dad’s out there might take this as a cautionary tail about the need to watch what your children are doing on the internet when you’re not looking.
The book is not a love story, it’s a true story of a girl who got involved in all sorts of kinky fuckery at a young age. There is not a lot of BDSM in the book, there is a lot more on the swingers scene with a bit of BDSM thrown in.
If you thought Fifty Shades of Grey was eye opening, your eyes might pop out at this book. The book is not crudely written, but Katie doesn’t mince words either. Lets face it, you don’t talk politely about orgies. The prologue is intriguing, and the book goes on to be unsettling at times, racy at other times and ends with a pretty normal girl in the epilogue. I liked the insight into this scene, without having to go out and set foot into it myself.
If you’re looking for a real Christian Grey connection, I think it does prove that Christian could step away from the BDSM scene, maybe not the way he did in the books, but this book does reaffirm that once you start down one path, you’re not stuck there forever. At 188 print pages it’s a fairly quick and interesting read. I hope you all enjoy it.
I did get a chance to ask the author some questions, here goes:
1. When you were stripping and performing online at 13 and 14 you said you thought you had control. Looking back, do you still think you were in control or do you think that although you could do what you wanted and shut off the camera when you wanted that you were being successfully manipulated by these men?
Answer:
That’s a really interesting question. I did feel at the time like I was in control of the whole process but I also genuinely enjoyed it and I went looking for it. That said, I think these men knew what to say to encourage me, and probably a lot of other girls, to keep taking things further.
Like with a lot of the episodes from when I was a teenager at the time I didn’t really think too much about stripping on camera. I felt I was in control, I felt like I was mature enough to do what I was doing and that was it. It’s only since I’ve started to speak about it, because of the book, that I’ve re-examined what happened. On reflection, I do now see it differently. Even though I expressly wanted to do these things, the men I was doing them with shouldn’t have gone along with it. They should have known better. Let’s face it – grown men shouldn’t be encouraging 14-year-old girls to strip on camera – even if they say that that’s what they want. And of course, I never lied about my age – they all knew.
2. In Fifty Shades of Grey, Christian believes that Mrs. Robinson and his introduction to BDSM helped him become a focused and controlled person. Putting aside the fictional character aspect of this, I think that his feelings were probably true, but that there were other ways he could have become a focused and controlled person. Looking back, do you think there were more “mainstream” activities that you could have done that would have helped with your shyness and boredom? I’m asking for all the mothers worried their bored daughters are going to start stripping online or join in at swingers parties.
Answer:
Around that time the Internet was new to a lot of people in their homes – and it brought porn with it. It was certainly something I had never been exposed to before and it made me curious. That was what sparked my interested initially and after a while I began to want to do more than just watch.
I was a bit of a loner as a teenager, but I do believe that even if I had of had a bigger group of friends I would still have done the same things online. I’m involved in sports now, but back then I had no interest in anything like that. I was pretty lazy, to be honest. I don’t think any other hobby might have worked for me at the time.
I don’t think at the time there was anything else that would have given me the type of attention that I wanted. It was a very specific type of attention that I wanted, and you can’t get that from just going out and socializing normally.
Thanks so much to Katie for answering my questions, I hope the questions offered some additional insight to you readers.
‘The Real 50 Shades of Grey’ Set to Shock Readers
New biography reveals extreme sex life of 20-something girl sucked into the undergrounds sex scene
Fifty Shades of Grey, the novel setting the publishing world alight with its explicit depictions of sadomasochistic sex, looks set to be upstaged by an even more graphic book – a true story about the real-life experiences of a 21-year-old girl.
Can You Keep a Secret? by ‘Katie Collins’ and Robert Carry tells the story of how Katie became a plaything of the underground sex scene.
The non-fiction title, published by Y Books, reveals how privately educated Katie began stripping in front of her computer while dozens of men watched via webcam when she was just 13 years old.
After having her first sexual experience with a police officer she met online when she was 14, Katie went on to form fleeting relationships with numerous men she met in internet chat rooms.
By her late teens Katie was addicted to casual sex, often meeting and sleeping with dozens of men each week and up to three in one day.
The youngster then got involved in the secretive swinging scene, regularly taking part in group-sex parties. These events, held in exclusive rental apartments and hotels, were attended by up to 80 eager participants.
Katie began to search for ever more extreme sexual experiences. The graphic account reveals how Katie, driven by a desire to explore her submissive side, became involved in fetishism and sadomasochism.
The book’s graphic depictions of bondage games, group sex and fetish orgies leave little to the imagination.
“This book is explosive,” said publisher Chenile Keogh. “It tells of the story of what happened when a girl’s sex life went way, way out of control.”
Keogh continued, “Katie got involved in everything from 80-strong swingers parties to bondage and S&M. Her story shines a light into the darkest corners of the underground sex scene.”
Can You Keep a Secret? is being released at a time when Fifty Shades of Grey is breaking sales records all over the world, even outstripping the Harry Potter series. Despite being on sale for months, the Fifty Shades trilogy is holding firm in the top three spots on best-seller lists worldwide.
But rather than viewing Fifty Shades of Grey as competition for Can You Keep a Secret? Keogh believes the Irish book will benefit from the worldwide phenomenon.
“Fifty Shades of Grey has changed women’s attitude to reading about adult themes,” she said.
“When the millions reading the trilogy get to the end, they may well be looking for the next big thing. A book that tells the story of another extreme sex life, and a true one at that, might just fit the bill.”
Can You Keep a Secret? went on worldwide release on 12 August 2012 and is available to download from via Amazon.com and the iBookstore, priced at €3.99 (US$4.91 or £2.99).
Notes for Editors
‘Katie Collins’ is a pseudonym. Her real name has been changed to protect her identity and the identities of other individuals depicted in the book.
You can find out more about the book by visiting the website: therealfiftyshades.com
Crissy
Disclaimer: A free copy of this book was given to the reader with the expectation that they would write a fair and honest review of it.
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