Holden is a hockey player that is in control of every facet of his life, but wants - needs - to turn over control in one area of his life. Unfortunately a picture leaked out and caused problems for him so he is anxious to put himself out there again. So when he goes to The Den he lies and states that he is a Dom, but Mistress V sees through that. V is actually Vanessa who knows Holden due to being a rep for athletes. Holden asks her to be his Mistess and she refuses. Vanessa has kept her personal and professional lives separate and Holden would definitely mess that up. Holden knows how badly he needs her and finally convinces her. The scenes between these two were scorching hot.The connection between V and Holden was so charged and the first time he said, "If it pleases you, Mistress." I was hooked.I give Bonds of Courage 5 hearts! I liked this book but I didn't love it as much as some other books in this series. I liked Holden, I liked that he was a submissive, but I didn't warm up to Vanessa until the book was almost over. Yes, she had her issues, but she held on to them even after Holden proved his devotion over and over. I thought that a couple of times she overstepped her power as a Domme trying to make Holden screw up. I like this series almost as well as Cherise Sinclair's Shadowlands series and I hate that it will end after the next book in Sept.
