Kudos for the clove hitch. That's exactly that. It's two half-hitches (demi-clefs), one half-hitch being the simplest knot ever.

Naval vocabulary being another hobby of mine... ;^)

Obviously my 'SQUICK' system is for private consumption. Its purpose is not to help a reader find a book she likes, but screen out books that will DISTRESS her. For example I don't take into account nc, mc, because people can be bored, but hardly enraged or disgusted by such themes. And I did use stricter definitions than you seem to favor. Just any murder or execution does not qualify for 'snuff', it has to be written as an erotic component.

For example, 'Feeding Bootsie' would rate a [S] [C] because the girl's termination is an obvious subject of mirth for her guards; and the 'c' for Critter is there because Bootsie has a definitely naughty mind, despite his primary fixation on food!

Cecil (no 'e') St Laurent is the pseudo of a conservative novelist, Jacques Laurent.

http://www.livreenpoche.com/auteur-107.html

He did write the Clotilde series, which is much steamier than his other bodice-ripper series, 'Caroline Chérie'. I had some good cums with it when it was the steamiest book I could find in my parents' house. It's no porn by any stretch of the word, but he had a knack in developing situations of incredible perversity.

Thank you for making me blush ;^)