REVIEW: 'Arctic Restitution' by Lynn Kelling

Title: Arctic Restitution

Series: Arctic Absolution #2

Author: Lynn Kelling

Published: May 23, 2017

Publisher: ForbiddenFiction - Imprint of Enspire Publishing

Cover Artist: Siol na Tine

Genre: Dark Contemporary Romance; Dark Erotic Romance

Length: 254 Pages

Tags: Gay; M/M; Angst: High; BDSM; Comfort/Hurt; May/December; Mental Illness; HFN; Kink: Orgasm Denial, Object Penetration, Sex Toys; CW: Taboo, Abusive Relationship, Degradation, Dub-Con, Non-Con, Emotional Abuse, Humiliation, References to Murder, Rape, Self-Harm, Sexual Abuse, Suicide, Torture and Violence

About Arctic Restitution As he approaches his twenty-second birthday, the three-year anniversary of the brutal attack in an alley that nearly cost him his life in a few different ways, Jaye Larson thinks he’s left behind the ghosts from his years spent incarcerated, but when he’s delivered a mysterious letter with terrifying implications, old monsters rear their ugly heads. His normal new life in remote Zus, Alaska, with his lover, Dixon Rowe, the heart of a found-family that supports Jaye in ways he’s never before dreamed possible, is threatened by old deals and ties he begins to fear may never be broken. While old alliances strive to draw Jaye backward, Dixon and the rest of their family are called to step up to keep him steady. When the letter turns out to be just the first clue in a chain leading both Jaye and Dixon back inside the walls of the Federal Corrections Institute of Sheridan, Oregon, all of them are left facing carefully-held secrets and terrible new truths that refuse to be ignored.

5 HEART READ

REVIEW: Arctic Restitution is the second book in the Arctic Absolution series (third if you include the prequel Caged Jaye) by Lynn Kelling, which includes Arctic Absolution. While the other two books in the story could be read in any order they should be read before Arctic Restitution.

It would be impossible to write this review without including some spoilers so please read the other books in this series or continue at your own risk.

The journey Lynn Kelling creates in the reading of Arctic Absolution followed by the prequel Caged Jaye and finally these characters’ conclusion in Arctic Restitution is an emotional experience that will stay with me a long time.

Kelling has a true gift of creating multi-level characters. The dichotomy of the sweet, sensitive cop; the angelic whore; the psychopath with a soul.

This is the story of emotionally and physically abused souls coming together and finding the strength to survive, heal, and eventually flourish in life.

Arctic Restitution opens with a look at the quiet domesticity which Jaye and Dixon’s lives have become after almost one year together. They have friends, jobs, and a peaceful existence in a community they love. Ghosts start to reappear with the upcoming celebration of Jaye’s 22nd birthday, the third anniversary of his brutal rape and attempted murder which led to his conviction and incarceration. Jaye has received a letter from Cash, his protector from FCI Sheridan, asking for a favor and to reestablish ties after a year apart. Cash builds a good case for why he needs to see Jaye and this has Dixon feeling frustrated and powerless.

The emotional struggle Dixon goes through over Jaye and Cash’s relationship, and the parallels between his own relationship with Marcus, have him questioning his ability to be the man Jaye needs right now. Dix knows he must put these feelings to rest, so he can reclaim his power in the relationship and overcome his own demons. Dixon’s pain is so beautiful. He is such a sensitive and caring man and his journey as he works through memories of his abuse left me loving his character even more.

All of Jaye’s ghosts, which had been kept at bay thanks to his loving relationship with Dixon, are dredged back up.

Jaye realizes he needs to come clean with Dixon about the magnitude of his abuse as well as his past motivations for securing protection.

Jaye tells Dixon:

“I had no reason to think I’d ever have a better life than just surviving, so I didn’t hold myself to any standards. I wasn’t a person, I was meat. A hole.”

And Dixon replies: “But you made it through…You’re the hero, Jaye. You’re the strongest man I know. Look me in the eye and tell me even a guy like Cash could have survived what you went through in there.”

Jaye comes to accept that Dixon’s love for him – the love Jaye had wished for all his life – will help get him through his meeting with Cash, his visit to FCI Sheridan and allow him to embrace the fulfilling existence he wants for the rest of his life.

I love the peek we get into Cash’s psyche. There are allusions into his many layers in Caged Jaye but to see them first hand now, and to know how Jaye’s leaving affected him, gave me shivers. Lynn Kelling does a marvelous job humanizing the psychopath.

It is a wonderful journey watching Jaye and Dix, two damaged men, find each other and make it through to become both strong, secure individuals and a supportive, loving couple. Jaye and Dixon realize that everything they went through, all the abuse, made them who they are today. Their love wouldn’t be the same if any of it had happened differently.

Arctic Restitution and the entire Arctic Absolution series are so beautifully written, Lynn Kelling’s characters and their relationships are always my favorite part of her stories.

She goes deep into their damage and gives them so much to overcome. Each character must both grow independently and deal with their individual issues as well as become the support network for his partner. The story of Dixon and Jaye will stay with me for years to come.

A copy of Arctic Restitution was provided to Kimmers Erotic Book Banter, by Lynn Kelling, at no cost and with no expectations in return. We offer our fair and honest opinion on behalf of our readers.

Be sure to read Trio's 5 HEART read recommendation of the prequel in the Arctic Absolution series, Caged Jaye .

Enspire Publishing; Smashwords; Kobo; iBooks; Barnes & Noble; Amazon

Meet the Author

Lynn Kelling began writing in order to tell stories that aren’t afraid of the dark, don’t hold anything back and always strive to be memorable, forging lasting attachments between character and reader. Her inspiration comes from taking a closer look at behaviors and ideas lurking at the fringes of life—basically anything that people may hesitate to speak of in mixed company, but everyone wonders about anyway. Her work is driven by the taboo in order to expose the humanity within it. Lynn is an artist, designer and lover of any form of creative self-expression that comes from a place of honesty and emotion, whether it’s body art or opera. She is an award-winning author who has written over fifty works of erotic fiction of varying lengths, and always has several novels in progress. Facebook; Goodreads; Twitter; Tumblr; Amazon