Reviews

Deliver Us by Lynn Kelling

kristinafh's review

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4.0

This was so close to being a five star read for me but some of the activities between the two main characters (the punishment scene at Darrick's house), I'm not squeamish but even for me it was pushing the envelope.

I did enjoy getting to know the cast of characters. Ben is absolutely hot and Kyle - well - his manipulative ways irritate me. I have a fondness for Michah and cannot wait to get to know more of Trace.

liza5326's review

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4.0

This is a hard book for me to rate because it is something that is normally WAY out of my comfort zone. I don’t mind BDSM, but this was the first time I have read something so extreme. I learned some things from this book that I necessarily never wanted/needed to know! Lol But all that aside, I really enjoyed Darrek and Gabe’s story. Setting aside the insta-love and crazy GFY after 60 minutes with no freak outs, there was a connection that you could feel. I could have done without a lot of the scenes with Kyle and Ben, but I know they are build up for book 2, which I will be reading. The only thing that kept it from being a 5 star read were the BDSM aspects that totally squicked me out and made me squirm. And there were only a couple of those.
SpoilerWater sports will always be a hard limit for me

nicola949's review against another edition

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4.0

I finally got around to reading this book after having it sitting on the Kindle for a while. I think I was getting up the courage to delve into the pretty intense world of BDSM that is Deliver Us.

When reading the book I found myself alternating between a strange compulsion to keep reading and a desire to put it down when things got a little on the heavy side - because this book doesn't shy way from explicit scenes of very heavy BDSM play with lots of pain! There was pain for pain's sake, not pleasure. There was piercing, water sports and use of strange devices for sensory deprivation.

The story focuses on Darrek, a straight man who gets a taste of being dominated from an ex-girlfriend, which results in him visiting a BDSM club. There he is partnered with Gabriel.

Both characters are fascinating, as are the secondary characters in the book. Along with the strong sexual element, the story deals with the impact of abuse. The relationship between Gabriel and Darrek explores the concept of dominance and submission, trust and love.

I didn't feel entirely comfortable reading this book. I didn't necessarily connect with the characters. But still it was an interesting journey. Be prepared, it is also a relatively long book. 3.5 stars

hpstrangelove's review

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3.0

Not a favorite but I enjoyed it. About 10% plot/90% sex. Some of the sex was really hot, other scenes, because there were so many, just seemed to drag on and not really move the story forward.

Still, I ended up buying the rest in the series, mostly because I'm interested in the characters.

(Somewhat OT: Texas is a big place, and it has cities. I would have liked to have known which city events took place in rather than just saying 'Texas'.)

wickedwitchofthewords's review against another edition

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1.0

What even was this book?
I nearly DNF-d it at 25% through because it just wasn’t right in any sense of the word, but I thought it might get better, let me give it a chance.
Boy, do I regret it.


Starting from the beginning, a straight boy goes to a BDSM establishment after a sex partner spanks him and he gets hard. Doesn’t read the paperwork/consent document, ticks some boxes, signs it and goes in. No one explains safe words, limits, or anything to this newbie. Only reaction the supposed Dom gets is when he finds the sub is a virgin straight boy he decides to fuck him because it would be fun.
Safe words are mostly forgotten in this book which is bad enough. The lack of experience on the sub’s part is ignored; there’s no easing into things, the dom just does things as he feels like it without considering anything else. Communication is shit. The dynamic is ridiculous. There’s no chemistry between any of the characters. Nothing, not a single issue is dealt with properly in this book, neither by the author nor by the characters.
And they fall in love from the get-go, it’s unbelievable, what remains is 40 or so chapters of “I’ve got baggage and we’re gonna deal with it via sex!”

There is absolutely nothing in this book, nothing.
The only reason this book was on my radar was because of Pyke’s Don’t… series. I dare say Pyke brought Lynn’s characters to life more than the original author.


The writing was also bad. This felt like a first draft and not a finished copy. Just saying.

vailynst's review

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4.0

I read a wide range of books that span every genre. I wasn't sure if I should purchase this book but I've been in a mode to try new authors and ideas. Deliver Us is not an easy book to read. It's about two men who fall in love in an unusual manner. An instinctive trust in the other gives both of them the strength to face down inner demons and embrace a future full of hope, passion and love. This story has a darker edge of BDSM that pushed the boundaries of my imagination. A key part of the story is abuse: child abuse, physical, mental and emotional abuse. If any of those are triggers for you, don't read this book.

The reason why it took me a while to read this book is because the story made me think a lot outside of the book and how that would be like in life. Most of the topics are harsh and hard to think about for any prolonged length of time. The core of this book is one of hope, love and strong relationships between lovers, friends and family. Yet all of it is shaded by the painful scars.

Parts of the story came off as very trite and over-dramatic. For me, the best part of the story is Dare and Gabe's journeys that forms a startlingly intense and passionate relationship. The way they learn about each other, themselves, get wrecked on the sharp edges of fear and sigh trembling in the safety of each other's arms is beautiful.

My favorite scene is towards the end of the book. I love the way Dare shows Gabe how he loves him. I love that their relationship is not based on any particular set of rules. That the one rule that they follow is to love each other.

vailynst's review against another edition

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4.0

I read a wide range of books that span every genre. I wasn't sure if I should purchase this book but I've been in a mode to try new authors and ideas. Deliver Us is not an easy book to read. It's about two men who fall in love in an unusual manner. An instinctive trust in the other gives both of them the strength to face down inner demons and embrace a future full of hope, passion and love. This story has a darker edge of BDSM that pushed the boundaries of my imagination. A key part of the story is abuse: child abuse, physical, mental and emotional abuse. If any of those are triggers for you, don't read this book.

The reason why it took me a while to read this book is because the story made me think a lot outside of the book and how that would be like in life. Most of the topics are harsh and hard to think about for any prolonged length of time. The core of this book is one of hope, love and strong relationships between lovers, friends and family. Yet all of it is shaded by the painful scars.

Parts of the story came off as very trite and over-dramatic. For me, the best part of the story is Dare and Gabe's journeys that forms a startlingly intense and passionate relationship. The way they learn about each other, themselves, get wrecked on the sharp edges of fear and sigh trembling in the safety of each other's arms is beautiful.

My favorite scene is towards the end of the book. I love the way Dare shows Gabe how he loves him. I love that their relationship is not based on any particular set of rules. That the one rule that they follow is to love each other.

noveldoll's review against another edition

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4.0

Having read quite a few m/m, bdsm romance novels I feel confident to say that this one swept me off my feet....and pulled me out of my comfort zone...a few times
With that being said lets move on to the things I liked:
-the characters (so interesting and enjoyable and lovely...well most of them)
-the relationships
-the BDSM part was done well in my opinion (hot in other words)
-fucking scorching sex scenes

Things I didn't like:
-the length of the book
-I felt like some parts needed further development
-I needed some more Darrek/Kyle interaction:)

disloyalorderof's review against another edition

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4.0

Really enjoyed this, but I wish that the main characters had not had a conversation about wanting to be "normal" -- like, being in a BDSM relationship is abornmal? Please.

I like the way the author handled Gabriel's history of abuse, I thought it was really well done. I also loved the friendship between Kyle and Darrick. I did wish that there had been more consequences after they had sex, and that it had been explored more fully.

Anyway, it was pretty good! I did not want to return it and get my money back when I was done reading, which is the highest praise I can give a book these days.
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