JAX
Author: J.L. Perry
Publisher: Hachette Australia
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: November 27, 2016

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I just read a surprising heartwarming romance.    Even if you have not read Bastard and Hooker, Jax can be read as a true standalone. Jax is a mixture of star cross lovers, friends to enemies and second chance romances.  The story packs a lot for the reader as a treat to enjoy.   This is my first J. L. Perry novel and I was very excited to read it.  

I wasn’t sure what to expect from a book titled “a Bastard Novel”.  I was very happy to enjoy a romance with a strong sense of family, honor and obligation.   Jaxson Albright aka Jax, the son of a political family, does not wish to follow in the family’s plan to become a politician.  He is defiant and shunned in his quest to become his own man. 

In the beginning, Jax walked away from Candice in a desperate attempt to prove she deserve someone worthy.  Years later, they meet again and resume their BFF relationships without trying to complicate matters with sex. However, their desire for each other puts them on a collision course to reveal secrets and lies.  They have been friends their entire lives hoping their love for each other is enough to make them happy together.  

JAX is the epitome of boy meets girl, boy lose girl, boy gets girl in the end despite  it’s repeated over  the course of several years.   Thank you, J L Perry, for providing a full story in one book.  Even though the romance is told over the course of years, it’s a true testament on how destiny plays a part in finding the love of your life.  I enjoyed the journey Jax and Candice  overcame.   There were moments when I didn’t like Jax, there were moments when I didn’t like Candice.  However, each character manages to redeem themselves for love and family. Which leads to my only flaw in the story.  The lack of resolution between Jax and his mother was needed IMHO considering so much of the story followed his life as a teenager.

 

 

My name is Jaxson Albright. To my friends I’m known as Jax. I’m the disgraced son of well-known Politician, Malcom Albright. You could say I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I was supposed to follow in my father’s footsteps and move into politics. My whole childhood was spent being groomed for this role, but that wasn’t what I wanted. I had other plans.

To my family’s disgust, I’m inked, I’m pierced and I own and run a tattoo parlour, in the hip suburb of Newtown. I fit in here. I can be the man I was destined to be, the man my family are ashamed of. The son they regret having.

I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for my saviour, Candice. My pink-haired angel. We grew up in the same circle, but like me, she’s an outcast. She refused to conform to society’s ways. She’s the only one who stuck by me and not only encouraged, but supported my dream.

I love her. No, correction—I’m in love with her. I have been for as long as I can remember. She has no idea how I feel. It’s a battle I struggle with daily. I’ve kept my secret all these years because I couldn’t risk losing her. That’s a chance I’m not prepared to take, because she’s my best friend; my only real family.

I’ve spent the last few years moving from one hot chick to the next, trying to mask these feeling I have. But it doesn’t help—I can’t get her out of my head. She still owns my damn heart.

How do you get over the girl you know you can never have? And how do you live without the one person on this earth who is made for you?

She’s my soulmate.