The Deeper He Hurts by Lynda Aicher

In this wild and sensual Kick novel from the RITA Award–nominated author of The Harder He Falls, a sizzling affair tempts the tech guru of a popular outdoor-adventure-sports company to come out of the closet and embrace his desires.

Asher Ruggiero, a partner at Adrenaline Kick Adventures, is living a lie. As a control freak whose big Italian family thinks he’s straight, Asher likes his encounters concise, dirty, and discreet—until his company’s new rafting guide walks into work, dripping with brooding, intense sexuality. Sawyer Stevens is a mystery man with secrets and rough edges, and he makes Asher want to get to know him inside and out.

Ever since the tragic death of his parents, Sawyer has dedicated himself to the rush of adrenaline that comes from pleasure and pain. Moving from one guy to another, hiding when life gets too complicated—that’s all he can handle. So why does Asher make him long for something lasting and honest, when the gorgeous geek can’t even be true to himself? Sawyer wants to give Asher his heart, but he just doesn’t know how. After all, a life without integrity is a life without passion—and that’s the one thing Sawyer craves.

The Deeper He Hurts is intended for mature audiences.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆
M/M BDSM, Romance
Triggers: Death, S/M

Asher and Sawyer were a difficult couple for me. The story is well thought out and complex.

Sawyer is an outdoor guide who is coming for a summer to work with the Kick team. He is complicated, surly, scared, and hot all wrapped into one. I like that he is trying to figure out how to heal, to keep his demons at bay.

Sawyer's story is sad and redeeming all wrapped into a great story. He seeks the domination that comes with working for Kick.

Ash is a Dom who has kind of lost his interest in the pain-seeking subs he's been playing with. They have lost their luster. But, he also doesn't really know what he's looking for – not until he meets Sawyer.

The two combined share a bond that even they don't fully comprehend at the beginning of their relationship.

When you throw in that Ash has family issues that need to be resolve and Sawyer has never been one to commit, not only do you get amazing chemistry, steamy scenes, love, and redemption, but you get a healing story.

This was a great second book in this series and I can't wait to read about everyone else.


Sarah – ☆☆☆
For me, the first half of this book was a 2-star read I nearly DNFed and the second half of the story was a 3.5-star read I quite enjoyed. I’m glad I stuck with the story even though I found the initial sadist/masochist scenes of physical torture quite difficult to read. Beyond the s/m scenes, Asher and Sawyer’s relationship is actually very sweet and their story has more depth to it than the first half suggests.

I am not a fan of this author’s writing style and I found the clunky prose distracting as I tried to get into the book. The story seems to be lacking an introduction and important information needed to set the scene, so I found myself reading very slowly as I scrambled for clues and hints at the start. Once I started enjoying the characters more, it bothered me less.

While many of us have become used to light BDSM in our romance, the focus is usually on the domination/submission or punishment/reward elements of the lifestyle. This story focuses on sadism and masochism, pushing past most mainstream writing into scenes of physical torture. I can’t remember many books with scenes quite as disturbing and readers need to be aware that this book contains scenes that are much more extreme than the slightly naughty sexy play we’ve all grown used to reading about.

Readers may want to order a sample before reading this book because the writing style isn’t for everyone. Open minded readers looking for a new kink may enjoy the more extreme BDSM in this story and romance fans will enjoy the complicated, slow build relationship between Sawyer and Asher.


Angie – ☆☆☆☆☆
4 1/2 stars
The first book in this series was just okay for me, but I really enjoyed this book. Not sure if it was because I came off of reading two really, really bad books or what, but this one worked for me and I can’t wait to read the next one. I am not into pain in any way, shape, or form, but Asher and Sawyer and their pain loving just worked for me. Their chemistry worked and I couldn’t get enough of them both. I kept trying to sneak in reading time when I was supposed to be working, LOL.

Characters: Well written
Sex: Oh yeah!
Religious: No
Would I recommend to others: Yes
More than one book in the series: Yes
Genre: M/M BDSM
Would I read more by this author: Yes

Also Available in the Kick Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca

For reviews & more info, check out our The Harder He Falls post.

Award-winning multipublished author Lynda Aicher loves to write emotionally charged romances. Her novels have appeared on Amazon’s top 100, Barnes & Noble top 10, and have been featured in USA Today and RT Book Reviews magazine. Her books have finaled in the Romance Writers of America’s RITA contest and won the BDSM Writer’s Con Golden Flogger Award. Prior to becoming an author, she spent years traveling weekly as a consultant implementing computer software into global companies until she opted to end her nomadic lifestyle to raise her children. Now, her imagination is the only limitation on where she can go, and her writing lets her escape from the daily duties of being a mom, wife, chauffeur, scheduler, cook, teacher, cleaner, and mediator.

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of The Deeper He Hurts (Kick #2) by Lynda Aicher to read and review.