I just finished reading this story. Though my choice is F/F F/M, this contains some good M/F spanking, the majority is F/F punishment, some quite severe. The characters are so true to life and though there are several disciplinarians in the book, Catherine Raven is the ultimate dominant, she rules everyone in her charge, from her daughter stepdaughter, employees, including her office workers, and domestic staff, all are ruled with an iron hand, hairbrush, strap, cane and anything else she can think of. If you enjoy spanking/ discipline stories, I highly recommend this excellent read. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was that it finished, I could have carried on reading it again.

"The Russell Corner" is about businessman Richard Russell who employs strict discipline in his home and office by means of over the knee punishment of wife, grown daughters and lately his female administrative assistant. The space in his office where he puts freshly spanked naughty girls to display their reddened bottoms as the final act of their punishment is known as the Russell Corner. His assistant Sarah takes a keen interest in the Russell Corner as she secretly peeks at Russell’s adult daughters standing nose to the wall with flaming nether cheeks exposed in penitence and embarrassment. It will not be long before Sarah finds herself in the Russell Corner after a sound spanking from the boss as a new employee discipline regimen is adopted specifically to deal with her.

But author Black doesn’t stop here, he also introduces us to another strong person in Catherine Raven, a businesswoman who also uses stringent discipline in her home and business. She punishes her adult daughter, female house servants and personal staff at the office, but her main disciplinary target is her stepdaughter Eleanor who also works for her and is Catherine’s heir apparent in her lucrative property development company. But Catherine is not your stereotypical evil stepmother. She is strict and doles out harsh punishment, but only to extract the absolute best from Eleanor who must one day run the company in the same professional, competent and profitable manner as her stepmother. And Catherine uses not only spanking and paddling to discipline her family and staff, but also creative punishments such as having her maid feed Eleanor unappetizing food containing items she dislikes, and the application of pepper oil on tenderized bottoms. And Catherine is a maestro at inflicting a symphony of humiliation upon deserving naughty girls particularly the embarrassment of bare bottom corner time, especially public corner time both home and in the office. It is not unusual for one of Catherine’s three assistants to be found in her outer office nose to the wall with skirt pinned up and knickers down around ankles displaying a rosy rear for all passersby to see. Nor is it rare for Eleanor to be ensconced in the corner by the main staircase in the entrance hall to their home with freshly spanked nates presented for servants and any visiting guest to espy; and Catherine will add to her stepdaughter’s torment by doing so when receiving guests for a grand dinner party.

Also throw into the mix Margaret Spencer, head of an exclusive finishing school for young ladies, who has her own very ouchy methods of dealing with unruly students and you have a book full of delicious spanking and punishment scenes consisting of M/F and F/F combinations.

"The Russell Corner" is not as plot driven as the author’s more recent works. In his own words “The plot itself is not a detailed one. It often merely serves as a hook on which to hang various punishment scenarios. But more importantly it allows for characters to be developed through an exploration of their motivations.”

That being the case Black more than makes up for it with vivid and vibrant characters who are three dimensional and colorful – and I’m talking more than the red-hued derrières of many of his nymphs. He fleshes out these people with details so the reader cares about them. Such as the poignant back stories of Macy and Kate, the chauffeur and cook for Catherine Raven who were saved from dire circumstances by their boss, but at the cost of corporal punishment which they willingly pay because Catherine provides love and protection while also satisfying their deep down need and desire for submission.

And the punishment scenarios the author hangs on his threadbare plot hook are strong, button-pushing affairs which leave the reader panting for more. DJ Black paints descriptive images that transports the reader within the scene so dominants feel their bare hands slapping warm bottom flesh, and submissives experience the burning backsides and blushing embarrassment of these well chastised naughty girls. He does this over and over again without falling into the ever present trap in spanking fiction of becoming repetitive. Particularly strong and emotive is the schadenfreude that runs throughout the novel. On numerous occasions one mischievous minx takes delight when another naughty imp is kicking and squealing while her bum is slapped cherry red then put nose first in the corner.

Since the book is a few years old I don’t know if DJ Black has any plans to continue the saga, but I for one would love to see these characters a few years down the road. It would be highly interesting to see if Eleanor can one day redeem herself and take over the company then watch her wield the power of the corporate presidency and the heavy clothes brush that goes with it. Could the brief meeting between Richard Russell and Catherine Raven be a prelude to ouchier things to come as the dominant Richard breaks through the defenses of the forceful Catherine to satisfy her deeply hidden and neglected submissive feelings? One can only hope the prolific author decides in favor of resurrecting these beautiful people.

The Russell Corner, highly recommended.