Jimmy

by Michele Pearson:

Ever since Fifty Shades of Grey came out, the media has been pointing out our supposed growing fascination with the BDSM lifestyle.  I, sadly, have read that trilogy and wrote a brief review on my personal blog.  Now, what happens in those awful books is completely consensual, as are most BDSM relationships.  The Submissive has the power and the Dominant has to respect the Submissive’s boundaries.  If he/she uses a pre-determined safeword, the Dominant must stop.

That doesn’t happen in Jimmy…and Jimmy is most definitely not a Fifty Shades type of story.

Jimmy is a disturbed teenager who has been fascinated by bondage and bondage related porn for as long as he can remember.  While he mostly fantasizes about being the abuser, he wonders what it would be like to be the victim and hung for hours without relief.  Rather than act out upon himself, he decides to find a victim, take her to a remote place, and act out upon her all the degrading acts he has watched on his collection of videos.

When I realized where Jimmy was going, my stomach turned.  I have watched and read a number of movies and books that depicted long, graphic rape and abuse scenes and most of them made me uncomfortable, more so if they are portrayed realistically.  This book definitely had a grain of reality to it and that’s what makes it horrific.  The story is told primarily through the eyes of Jimmy.  People often ask what was going on in a criminal’s mind as he/she was committing the crimes.  Here, you see first hand what this twisted little freak is thinking.  You also learn about him through the eyes of others: from his victim, you see the depravity; from his little brother, you see a hero; and from the girl who likes him, you see that a gentler side does exist to a point.  The reader actually learns what kind of a person would do these things and we see right away that this is just a normal looking and, publicly anyway, acting kid.  That’s what made this book even more disturbing, if that is even possible.  It’s a reminder that not all evil is outwardly visible on those that commit it.

While the writing is sound and it is an engaging story, the content is definitely not for the squeamish.  It is graphic, disturbing and often goes on longer and in more detail than it should.  When deciding on whether or not to read Jimmy, keep in mind the content and if that is not your ideal read, then I’d recommend a pass.  However, if you can handle the topic and you are looking for something new, this is definitely different than anything you’ve probably read lately and you might want to check it out.

Jimmy can be found on Amazon.com.

Michele Pearson is a contributor for DarkMedia. She covers Vampire Diaries and any other films, books, etc that come her way. She reads everything from Lonesome Dove to Game of Thrones and loves epic tv series like Doctor Who and Star Trek: TNG. Michele also loves a good horror film and was able to channel that love as a judge for Shriekfest 2012. Follow her on Twitter at @GirlInRowB and check out her blog at http://www.girlinrowb.com.