Title: Damaged Goods
Series: The Men of London, #7
Author: Susan Mac Nicol
Genre: New Adult Romance
Length: 183 pages
Publisher: Boroughs Publishing (April 28th, 2016)
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥5 Hearts
Blurb: Touched by tragedy, love is an elusive dream never to be realized by eighteen-year-old Jax Grady–until he discovers his secret admirer and receives the sweetest gift he could ever desire.
THE SWEETEST GIFT
Tragedy and horror shaped Jackson Grady’s life, leaving him orphaned and scarred. At eighteen he’s ready to claim his future, but who could love his disfigured face and damaged soul? Definitely not a big, burly, beautiful Irish Traveller who is entirely the stuff of dreams.
Dare Rowan didn’t mean to become obsessed with the blue-eyed man he first saw across a field, but that porcelain skin and innocent air demanded another meeting. Jax has the face of a wounded angel, and the rest of the young man is as heart-breakingly perfect.
Jax is beautiful in every way and teaching him about love and life will be something Dare will embrace. Like unwrapping and savoring the candy at the shop where he works, Dare will show this young man everything Jax desired but never thought he’d have, and take Jax to new highs while he holds him through the lows.
Between them, they’ll find out just how sweet life can be.
ISBN: 9781944262242
Product Link(s): http://boroughspublishinggroup.com/books/damaged-goods
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/631793
Reviewer: Tams
Review: Jackson Grady has experienced far more trauma at the tender young age of 18 than many people twice his age. First his father re-married, a woman with her own teenage son, neither new wife or new step brother caring much for Jackson. In the hospital with scars on the outside as well as in, caused by said step brother, his father dies of a heart attack. Not only does Jackson miss the funeral, his step monster sells everything and leaves Jackson to fend for himself. Thankfully, his father thought ahead and left his son a trust.
Kildare Rowan, known to most as Dare, is drawn to Jackson from afar. He sees the scars, he realizes that the object of his affection has been hurt by the way he carries himself, guarded and curt. Jackson sees himself as broken, ugly and unwanted.
But Dare sees him as his Angel, the scars and the painful past bringing Dare’s protective instincts to the surface. It’s a rocky start for these two. Between the age difference, Jackson’s trust issues that are absolutely and completely warranted, and Dare’s inability to communicate appropriately early on, they have a few hurdles to jump.
Just when I think Mac Nicol has covered every possible angle for a story in this series, she surprises me yet again. I loved the pairing of Jackson and Dare. Jackson so fragile, innocent and uncertain… Dare’s brooding and bodyguard mentality that presents itself as love and protection… they come from different worlds, but they manage to find a way to make it work.
The writing is superb as usual, the romance and passion these two share is on a different level and expresses itself in a different way, but I really liked that about the story.
Definitely a must read for fans of the Author and/or the series, but I feel that anyone that reads the genre would enjoy the story. A damaged character finding love, a big guy that just wants someone to cherish finding the perfect person for him, a different kind of love story.
Although you could probably read this book as a standalone story, several characters from the past books make an appearance and their impact on this book might not make as much sense if you haven’t read them all.