Sgt. Vlengles' Revenge

Rating:
Summary: Tales from the Darker Side
Review: The second anthology from gay fetish author Tim Brough follows the same format as his first, "Black Gloves, White Magic." "Sgt. Vlengles' Revenge" contains a dozen stories written for various magazines and websites over a ten year period, and cover a great deal of topics. But the difference is in that, this time, the stories are frequently darker and lengthier. The subtitle "And Other Abuses of Power" is not mere hyperbole.

The title story, for instance, twists and turns as Sgt. Vlengles meets up with a cadet whom, 18 years ago, managed to get him dismissed from his post as a State Police Academy superintendent. In a session that goes horribly wrong, the participants each discover that revenge may not be so sweet. This kind of psychological bending goes on through the Truth or Dare challenge of "I Remember The Air Raid Sirens." The characters are more inclined to be authority figures than before, and the power exchanges described lean toward the way men exercise that kind of authority.

Not like everything in "Sgt. Vlengles' Revenge" is enveloped in darkness. As the author describes in a brief explanation before one the pieces, a satirical article written for the Sandmutopian Guardian magazine, that "the best leather jackets are carved from the sacred cow." The following piece, "There's No Such Thing As A Pushy Bottom," takes the wind out some of the biggest sails in the community and -- again as Tim puts it -- makes the story a "true abuse of power."

There are also two stories that get at many of the deeper issues involved in relationships, they are "The Butch God Trilogy" and "To Explode In Beauty," where the characters explore what exactly draws them to these encounters and, most importantly, what makes them feel complete about being there. For both "Black Gloves, White Magic" and "Sgt. Vlengles' Revenge," it is the author's understanding of those who participate that make many of his stories such satisfying reads.