Thank you to Jay Crownover for the advance reader copy of Son of a Gun, the third book in The Forever Marked series.
This book is a celebration of all things Jay Crownover! It feels almost like a love letter to her fans, to all of us who see the Marked Men as a family and The Point as a home. If you love Jay’s books you will adore this and all the easter eggs it holds for her wider universe. Plus there is an emotionally charged love story between Daire and Campbell that will hook any new reader in.
I am a Jay Crownover review team member, but I remain honest and genuine in my reviews.
Heavy is the head that inherits the crown. The only thing on Daire Archer’s mind when she pulled a disappearing act on Christmas was proving she was worthy of being her father’s daughter. She was born an Archer, which was a blessing and a curse, and Daire was determined to show everyone she deserved to carry the legacy that came with her name. There is power in a name, and being an Archer meant Daire needed to do better, to be better. At least, that’s what she thought she needed, until a boy from nowhere—with a name that meant nothing—showed her that she was already pretty great just the way she was. Campbell has always rejected everything concerning his maniacal father and his troubled past. When he left Nowhere, he was certain he wanted a nice, quiet life free from the only things he’d ever violence and bloodshed. He thought he needed to be a better man. He wondered if there was a kinder, gentler version of himself under his thick armor of scars and tattoos. It wasn’t until he started chasing Daire Archer all over hell and back that Campbell realized he needed to be a man who was better at being bad than everyone else in his troubled world. Because now, he had a problematic princess to protect. One with an uncanny ability for finding trouble. Where Daire is concerned, being a good guy isn’t necessary.
Check out my more detailed thoughts below…
- Characters: I have been so excited to get into Daire Archer’s head since she waltzed on the page in Fortunate Son. The Archers are an infamous bunch and Daire is struggling with that family legacy on her shoulders. It was interesting to read a character in her position, where she carries so much guilt that it almost seems inescapable. That’s why Campbell was so good for her, but she was also the perfect salve of goodness in his world full of darkness. For fans of Jay’s books set in The Point, I recommended re-reading the epilogue of Respect as it was the first time Campbell was introduced on the page. His character is deliciously complex, the kind of guy who has not been given the ability to be the good guy in his life. He has constantly been too busy saving everyone around him to give anything to himself, until Daire challenges that. I feel the need here to say if you have read countless of Jay’s books you will love all the cameos throughout this book that extend beyond characters from Marked Men and The Point.
- Setting: This story starts in Denver where the majority of the Marked Men, Saints of Denver, and Forever Marked have taken place. But Daire is running away from home and Campbell is after her. When she refuses to return home he is forced to take her on a road trip to where he grew up the infamous Jay setting of Nowhere. The scenes in Nowhere were some of my favourites because I loved Karsen back when I read Respect and I loved seeing her grown up, in her element. This book had so many great forced proximity moments brought about by cramped hotel rooms and long car rides.
- Pacing: I engulfed this story, and I truly mean that. I read this in close to one sitting and in just a few hours. It is a testament to how Jay just draws you into the story, that I put up blinders to the rest of the world and let her whisk me away on Daire and Campbell’s journey.
- Romance: If Jay is good at anything she takes the reader from an emotional high that gets you teary-eyed to a sultry scene that gets you hot and bothered. Daire and Campbell delivered both, a romance your heart-ached for between characters who both so desperately deserved the other. Along with tension and chemistry that was undeniably steamy.
Son of a Gun receives five out of five stars.
You can pick up the story here.
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Thank you again to Jay and her team for the review opportunity. Thank you for reading and supporting my blog!
