The invisible ring-chapter one
In the first chapter (which is very short) Bishop relates to a custom she uses in a few of her books. Before i mention it, you must understand that almost all of her books are meant for mature readers because there are many customs that are "unique" and that many would find funny. This particular reoccurring custom is a way of controlling males of a race called "the Blood" where a Ring of Obedience is placed around his penis by a Queen of the Blood. The blood use jewels to signify power, so if you have a certain amount of power you can wear any color up to your power level. Anne Bishop often has a flare for creating a world were women are more powerful and "the glass ceiling" does not in any way connect to them but more to males. The Ring of Obedience is cruel because it causes large amounts of pain to the males genitalia if he decides to disobey or even if the queen is in a fowl mood seeing as it is her power that controls it.