Chasing Harlow by Jay McLean is live!
Jay McLean owns my heart once again with this stunningly emotional YA romance! This book had me feeling in all the best ways; I laughed, I cried, I ached, and I fell in love with these amazing characters. Their story is beautifully written and full of feels, and this is a fave for 2024.
Amazon
Blurb
What started as a bet can only end in heartache.
Moving to the middle of nowhere right before my senior year wasn’t ideal.
Then again, neither was my brother dying.
The move was supposed to be a fresh start.
A new town, a new school, a new mindset.
Too bad my past indiscretions followed me.
Enter Jace Rivera, the literal boy next door.
Jace is loved by the town. Admired by his peers. Worshipped by his teammates.
On the basketball court, he’s a god amongst men.
Off the court, he’s… nothing at all like I expected.
He’s profound and pure and… devastatingly tortured.
Yet somehow, he offers me light while I offer him hope.
In the end, we’ll either hurt or heal each other.
There’s no in between.
“Pain is the price we pay for love,” he once told me.
And a broken heart is the consequence of it.
Review
5 heartwrenchingly beautiful stars
Jay McLean owns my heart once again with this stunningly emotional YA romance! This book had me feeling in all the best ways; I laughed, I cried, I ached, and I fell in love with these amazing characters. Their story is beautifully written and full of feels, and this is a fave for 2024.
The beginning of this story was part of the Hit Me With Your Best Shot Anthology, which released in March 2024. Then titled In the Company of Darkness, that small taste had me absolutely hooked and desperate for more, so I was beyond excited to finally get my hands on this book and dive in to Harlow and Jace’s story.
Harlow and her parents have moved to a remote small town following a devastating family tragedy. They are looking for a fresh start, and Harlow will be entering her senior year of high school. Jace Rivera lives in the property next door to Harlow. Quiet and reserved, he’s dealing with his own family trauma, but he focusses his life on basketball. He’s a star player, and the home-town hero with a bright future ahead of him, he just needs to make it through his senior year.
Harlow and Jace’s home lives are difficult. They are tortured souls struggling with grief, trauma and somewhat messed-up situations, but they’re trying to make the best of things. Their first meetings don’t go well, but when Harlow proposes a mutually beneficial fake relationship, things start to change.
“Maybe a little later down the road, you and me… we can mean something… to each other.”
They slowly start to open to each other, they develop a friendship, and then more, and slowly, naturally, and oh-so-beautifully, they fall in pure, intense, soul-deep love. In the most beautiful love story, they become each other’s whole worlds, the light in the dark, and I was completely swept up in the wonder and beauty of all that they feel for each other.
Before I am ready, he pulls away, struggling for air, and asks, “Are we still faking it?”
My lips a whisper from his, I shake my head.
He smiles.
And it’s in this moment that I fall.
Hard.
Deep.
In the company of darkness, Jace Rivera becomes my light.
But life hasn’t been kind to these two, and they have some major challenges to face. Though they support each other unquestionably, they have a heartbreakingly difficult road, and I ached for them both. I cried through chapters of this book, feeling so much for them and wanting better for both of them. It’s just not fair. But watching them push through and find their way forward is a beautiful journey. They confront their issues head on, they grow and change, and it’s a necessary part of their healing both as individuals, and together. And though it hurt, I loved watching them come through it all.
“I love the way you see me.”
“I wish you could see yourself through my eyes.” I lean forward, press my lips to hers, keep them there when I add, “You make loving you so easy.”
There’s a phenomenal bunch of friends and family who have their backs through it all, and I loved that they had so many people around them who loved and supported them, and that they were able to lean on. Harlow’s Dad is awesome, Jonah is adorable, and the extended found-family group contribute a lot to the story.
Jay McLean writes the most amazing YA romance. The voice she brings to her stories is so real, and she’s written an amazing story for Jace and Harlow. This book is beautifully written, it made me feel everything, and it’s an amazing read.
I love this one so much – 5 stars!
An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the author for an honest review.
About the Author
Jay McLean is an international best-selling author and full-time reader, writer of New Adult and Young Adult romance, and skilled procrastinator. When she’s not doing any of those things, she can be found running after her three little boys, investing way too much time on True Crime Documentaries and binge-watching reality TV.
She writes what she loves to read, which are books that can make her laugh, make her hurt and make her feel.
Jay lives in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia, in her dream home where music is loud and laughter is louder.
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