The Deeper He Hurts

Aicher’s engaging second Kick kinky erotic contemporary romance (after The Harder He Falls) introduces Sawyer, a white-water rafting guide and self-described pain slut, and Asher, a preppy tech geek and sadist, who meet when Sawyer takes a summer job at Adrenaline Kick Adventures in Portland, Ore. Sawyer survived a fire that killed his family, and he seeks relief from his ongoing PTSD symptoms through deliberately inflicted pain. Asher, who’s closeted to his large family, longs for intimacy and sexual compatibility. Aicher balances scenes of explicit and often extreme BDSM activity, including beatings and branding, with Asher’s strong sense of responsibility and Sawyer’s desperate need for healing. Recognizing in each other the possibility of real connection, Asher contemplates coming out to his family and Sawyer allows himself to experience the “crazy, mounting yearning to be held. To live instead of survive.” Aicher makes her protagonists likable and empathetic, and their romance is uplifting. (Sept.)