The Farther He Runs, from Lynda Aicher (Kick #3)

Good night, people! Are you ready to rock?!! I hope so, as the book I’ll be reviewing Tonight r o c k e d my world ❤ I’m talking about the third book of the Kick series, from Lynda Aicher: The Farther He Runs! Please, on’t get sad that we are “already” on the review for book 3! All books in the Kick series can be read as standalones, so you can pick your favorite and devour it without worrying about losing content =D

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, so buckle your seatbelts and let’s do this! Thanks so much to Loveswept for my copy, I loved it!

Read here my reviews for the previous books in the series!

The Harder He Falls (Kick #1) | The Deeper He Hurts (Kick #2)

Finn’s survival and recovery from a tragic accident with his cousin and best friend ten months ago can only be described as miraculous. After many months spent into a comma and struggling to recover his movements and basic motor coordination, anyone would be happy to know they are alive.

Not Finn. His Marine pride insists on reminding him all that he had lost in the accident. His shape. His dignity. His best friend. Finn was now just a broken and shallow vessel of the man he used to be – the man he loved to be. And now his remaining best friend and long-term platonic crush, Tanner Dorsey, came home after deployment.

How is Finn supposed to look Tanner in the eye and feel worthy of his attention now?

If anyone ever cares to find out how a true bitch-slap from life can hurt, just ask Tanner Dorsey. After months with barely any communication outside the military world, Tanner comes home to find out one of his best friends is dead and the other, broken.

Tanner has mixed feelings about the tragic accident that took Chris’ life away. While his heart won’t stop bleeding for his best friend any time soon, it’s also his one in a million chance to show Finn, his platonic soul mate, that he is no lesser of a man for relying on others. For relaying on Tanner. However, how could he prove to Finn he would always be there for him?

How is Tanner supposed to convince Finn they could work together?

Me after finishing this book

Just remembering that those were my impressions and opinion as a reader 🙂

This was without any shade of doubt the best book in the whole series! Aicher is that kind of author that visibly evolves from one work to another and she managed to capture my heart from page 1 to 224 ❤ In the past, I used to have reservations about the BSDM content on her books, as this isn’t quite my cup of tea, but in The Farther He Runs, I was panting at EVERY SCENE! I can securely say that Aicher doesn’t only know her business when talking about it, she can make you understand the pleasure in her character’s pain and she makes you enjoy it with them.

Aicher also touches her readers’ hearts with the military background of her main characters, how deeply they were touched by the army’s teachings. Complex characters, hot as hell sex scenes, and real and heartbreaking situations made this book a full five stars for me.

The narrative is third person with switching points of view between Finn and Tanner, just like the previous books with their respective couples. Aicher’s writing style is involving, but sometimes she beats too much around the same bush for my tastes. Oh, well.

I must admit that drama isn’t my go-to genre, even when it’s just a genre among many others inside a book and not the focus. To read a quite dramatic series as Kick turned out to be a delightful challenge, as I was able to test my mental strength, per say. Finn and Tanner’s story brushed so much with reality – their story was so boys-next-door – that moved me and had me tearing up a bit.

Let me explain: on fictional works, military men and women mostly are portrayed through their stereotypes, like all the other professionals in their respective fields. You have the hot marine, the sassy journalist, the hunky doctor, the nerdy IT guy, etc. It’s alright, it’s okay, as Ashley Tisdale would say. The Farther He Runs was the first contemporary romance that I have read that knocked all of this down. Finn and Tanner were hot marines? Yes. But, among anything else, they were real men, with real scars and suffering, with real feelings. We get to glimpse behind all their meticulously built walls and it was amazing, emotional and enlightening.

Even when the drama became too much, I couldn’t let go. I needed to see the light in the end of the tunnel for them, you know? My heart bleed with them, I needed the reassurance as much as they did. This feeling is indescribably awesome ❤

As a dramatic romance, it’s to be expected that the plot isn’t anything out of this world – none of Kick books has a complex plot. And it’s okay. I may have said once or twice, but when you find yourself in social situations such as Finn and Tanner lived on, life itself is a challenge. You don’t need an extra mystery to top your worries or keep you up all night reading because society itself can be a mystery and people keep doing unexpected things for good and bad. This is all the mystery we need under such grim circumstances.

I kind of already went on about the characters, but let me just make a comment or two about Finn and Tanner to move on, alright? Hahahha!

I really liked both men, as they have the perfect balance of flaws and blessings on their personalities, and I wouldn’t know how to choose among them, haha! I loved them as a couple, as the dynamics friends-to-lovers is one of my favorite elements in any book ❤ Even their sex was fun at times, not to mention the delicious switching. I loooove when gay couples don’t have ‘permanent’ roles in bed – Ava March spoiled me with all her delicious notions about true and free love, #sorrynotsorry hahaha

However, I must admit that Tanner is my true social hero between those two. Instead of going on and on about what he did/said, I’ll just break my own protocol and leave this here:

“No one ever came out as straight, so he’d never seen the point of informing anyone about whom he preferred to sleep with. (…) His sexuality didn’t affect his job or change who he was. It’d never been his identity, only a component he’d blended with the rest to form the whole him. The second he came out, he’d have one more stereotype to battle, and he was so fucking tired of defending who he was.”

I HAVE FINALLY FOUND A BOOK THAT SAYS EXACTLY WHAT I THINK ABOUT ANYONE’S SEXUALITY!

Ahem. Back to the book.

Did I mentioned the sex scenes? They aren’t only real, they are HOT AND DELICIOUS and beware of the BSDM, because it’s faint, but it is there. I admit I’m not a regular fan, but this book made me a believer, hahaha!

Also, we all should take a few moments to just gaze at this cover. At hose hard abs. At his gorgeous guy involved in such a gorgeous art. I’m in love. #justsaying

To wrap things up, I’d like to highlight some cool and kickass quotes to help you see the light convince you that you need to read The Farther He Runs:

“So many should’ves he just didn’t have it in him to do.” – Finn’s thoughts

~*~

“Assimilating back into normal was hard as hell when you couldn’t remember what normal was.” – Tanner’s thoughts

~*~

“He had to remember what was important. Friendship. Trust. A bond that extended years and had held strong through many challenges.” – Finn’s thoughts

~*~

And this winning dialogue:

Rig: Why are you just standing there?

Finn: I like lording over my minions.

~*~

If you like gay contemporary romance, army men, steamy hot sex and beautiful stories, you MUST read The Farther He Runs!

Thank you so much for reading my review and, once again, thanks to Loveswept for the invitation to review this book! It was my pleasure =D

With love,