Holding On

David is a 40-ish American living in Bangkok, and facing a bit of a mid-life crisis. After more than a dozen years living in Thailand, he has become disillusioned and is considering returning to the states for the first time. David is very shy but wears his heart on his sleeve. He came to Thailand in search of love, but after a string of relationships that didn’t go anywhere, David has come to realize that he might be a submissive, and doubts he could find a suitable dominant in Thailand. Then, into David’s life drops Gun, a strong, confident 30-something Thai man. Gun is an experienced dom and seems to be everything that David could hope for, but David’s own insecurities may sink the relationship before it really gets off the ground.

Holding On tells the story of the start of an unusual relationship, involving David, an older American living in Bangkok, and Gun, a younger Thai man who plays the dominant role in the relationship. Being submissive is in David's nature, but can he overcome a lifetime of being self-reliant to be happy submitting to Gun's control, however gentle that may be? We all come into relationships with baggage, but David has a bit more than most. As he becomes more and more enthralled with his new dom, David's own self-doubts begin to sew the seeds of discontent. Does he really deserve to be loved?

Kindly note that Holding On is the story of a Dominant/submissive relationship, with explicit descriptions of sex between men, including some very light bondage scenes. This book is intended for adult audiences only.

Michael Joseph is the pen name of a Bangkok-based travel writer with more than 20 years experience traveling throughout Southeast Asia. Holding On is his fourth fiction book.