Explicit and implied female bondage is a frequent element of contemporary romance fiction. Included here are only those scenes in which the bondage has clear sexual overtones. I have not referenced occasions in which the heroine is simply tied up for a while in a non-sexual context. Nor have I included those scenes in which the heroine is restrained by a "bad guy," by someone who may have sex on his mind but who inspires only revulsion in the heroine. Unless otherwise indicated, "he" refers to the hero and "she" refers to the heroine.

Allegheny Captive by Caroline Bourne (Zebra Books, 1990)

• p. 124+ angry, he drags her upstairs, throws her inside their hotel room, and tells her he is going to have sex with her for as long as he desires. He orders her to remove her clothes and, when she fails to comply, tears her gown. He throws her on the bed, imbobilizing her wrists
• p. 243+ drunk and demoralized, he grabs her. She struggles, he imprisons her wrists

Bandit's Kiss by Mary Lou Rich (Diamond Books, 1993)

• p. 227+ believing she has betrayed him, he yanks the sheet off of her, straddles and restrains her. She struggles, but he is too strong

Edin's Embrace by Nadine Crenshaw (Zebra Books, 1989)

• p. 199+ at a feast, he instructs her to sit at his feet and proceeds to caress her absentmindedly. We're told it was as though she were "chained" there
• p. 276+ drunk and angry, he ignores her struggles, pinning her body to the bed, and her hands above her head

Enslaved by Virginia Henley (Island Books, 1996)

• p. 78 transported back in time to Ancient Rome, the military general who is the book’s hero orders the heroine's capture. She is secured to the back of a wagon by a metal collar
• p. 110+ he ties her hands to the headboard, forces open her legs, and examines her intimately in order to confirm that she is a virgin

Fires of Surrender by Sylvie F. Sommerfield (Zebra Books, 1990)

• p. 111+ he overpowers her and holds her close. We read: "He kissed her slowly, leisurely, as if he were enjoying her capture immensely"
• p. 250+ on their wedding night, he arouses her passions, but afterwards she refuses to acknowledge that she desires him. He pins her hands above her head and sets about arousing her again, intending to use her desire against her
• p. 325+ overcome by jealousy, he takes her in his arms. She struggles, only to have him imprison her body with his own. When he feels her abandon all resistance, he laughs

Pirate's Love, A by Johanna Lindsey (Avon Books, 1978)

• p. 118+ he says he will return shortly and that he expects her to be naked and waiting for him in bed. She struggles and he overpowers her. She is left with marks on her wrists (p. 130)
• p. 212+ he captures her after she has escaped from him. She is bound hand and foot and gagged. He uses a knife to cut away her clothing, reties her hands above her head, and has sex with her
• p. 234 he keeps her locked in a room for three weeks

Pirate's Pleasure, A by Heather Graham (Dell Books, 1989)

• p. 29 he has bested her in a sword fight and she has fallen to the deck. He places a boot on either side of her, deliberately standing on her long hair and tattered dress
• p. 99+ he grabs her, restraining her wrists with one hand while he caresses her with the other. He threatens to take her standing up, with her back against the wall
• p. 249 she slaps him and he retaliates by grabbing her by the hair and holding her in place
• p. 283+ he throws her on the bed, and leaps on top of her "pinning her there"

Prisoner of My Desire by Johanna Lindsey (Avon Books, 1991)

• p. 134+ he chains the naked heroine to the bed with her legs spread-eagled and her mouth gagged. He refers to her as "wench"
• p. 260+ he pins her hands to the bed even when she willingly has sex with him

Slave of My Heart by Ann Lynn (Zebra Books, 1990)

• the front cover shows the hero pinning the heroine's wrist to the blankets
• p. 141+ she resists his advances and he uses his weight to keep her still, "prying her legs apart" with his knee. He grabs a handful of her hair and uses it to pull her to her feet

Surrender My Love by Johanna Lindsey (Avon Books, 1994)

• p. 3+ we learn that one of the supporting characters met his wife when she was his slave, and that he kept her in chains
• p. 127+ the hero, out of revenge, has ordered the heroine taken prisoner. She spends the night tied to a wagon wheel, her hands bound. She is tied behind the wagon and made to walk miles in the heat of the day
• p. 186+ he locks custom-made metal shackles around her wrists and ankles, and a collar around her neck. A spike is hammered into the wall in a corner of his room, and she is attached to it via a length of chain that snaps onto a ring on her collar
• p. 218+ using the length of chain as a leash, he leads her down into the public hall. Another character refers to her as a "pet"

To Love a Man by Karen Robards (Warner Books, 1985)

• p. 103+ while they're making love, he holds her "captive" with his thighs and pins her hands "against the hard ground." She is described as straining "to free herself," and as being "helpless."
• afterwards, he punctures her afterglow by insulting her and laughing at her hurt feelings. She slaps him, and he retaliates by grabbing her wrist "in a vise grip" which he then tightens "punishingly." She asks him to release her, but instead he pulls her close to him, where we're told she is an "unwilling prisoner." He takes obvious pleasure in the fact that her attempts at escape are ineffectual

Until Forever by Johanna Lindsey (Avon Books, 1995)

• p. 270, he pushes her against a wall, trapping her there between his arms

to PKC main page to top of web site