Review: The Fighter by Jordan Ford

The Fighter (Barrett Boys #2)
by Jordan Ford

My Rating: 3 stars

Genre: Romantic Suspense
Age Category: Young Adult
Type of romance: MF

Blurb:
He’ll do anything to save a young girl’s life. She’s a runaway who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Can a carjacking turn into a partnership that will redeem them both?

Deeks:
I may be an asshole, but I’d never intentionally hurt an innocent.
I had to steal her car, though.
To save someone I swore to protect.

I’ve screwed up enough times to turn my life into a wreck.
But I’m not failing on this one.
Maybe this chick can help me.
I don’t want to risk her life, but she’s smart and resourceful, and just might know how to keep us alive.

Kena Chan with her beautiful eyes and knock-out smile.
Grandpa would love her. He always told me to find a girl who was a thinker. “They’re worth their weight in gold, son. If anyone can get you out of a mess, it’s a woman who’s smarter than you are.”

I hope he’s right.
I hope that the Barrett in me can find the strength to fight this battle and get everyone to safety before it’s too late.

The Fighter is the second book in a thrilling YA romance series. If you like high-octane drama, a smoking hot bad boy, fiery banter and sizzling kisses, then you’ll love Jordan Ford’s gripping novel.

Buy The Fighter for a heart-racing love story today!

My Review

I received a free copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.

After reading The Runaway I was curious to see what would happen in The Fighter. The Runaway ends with a hint of what is happening with Deeks and I was looking forward to this story. The Fighter follows a new couple namely Deeks and Kena and how they meet and grow closer. There also is a suspense/ danger element again.

Unlike what I expected the story starts a lot earlier than that scene we get at the end of the Runaway. I felt that scene ruined some of the suspense for Deeks story as we know a few pieces and where they are going to end up. There is still plenty we don’t know and I enjoyed seeing the story play out. Deeks and Kena meet in a very unusual way when he carjacks her car. It was a bit too convenient timing wise and I found Kena’s reaction a bit unrealistic, but I did like seeing them end up together.

The Fighter is a combination of suspense and danger for the couple as well as some sweet, romantic and deep bonding scenes between the two of them. There were some parts I really enjoyed and others that didn’t quite for me. As I mentioned before there are a few things that are just a tad unrealistic and at times I couldn’t quite suspense my disbelief. The story also failed to grab my attention as much as I wanted. And I didn’t really care about the danger/ suspense elements, but I think that’s mostly my current reading mood. Because we already knew some of the Barret Boys’ past due to book 1 I felt there wasn’t as much much curiosity about that in this book and I was glad Deeks doesn’t wait too long to tell Kena what happened. Kena has her own hurt in the past and it was great seeing her open up to Deeks about those.

After the rough start I did end up liking the romance between Kena and Deeks, things develop quickly, but I felt their connection and I like how they get to know each other well in a short period of time and confide in the other. I liked both Kena and Deeks and how we got a feel for their characters. I didn’t really care for Deeks fighting habit, but it was clear he had a good heart. I enjoyed seeing a bit of Annie and Michael from book 1 toward the end of this book. The epilogue is great and I wish we got to spend more time at the ranch, maybe in future books. I am looking forward to the next Barret Boys story.

To summarize: The Fighter is a solid sequel. While it can be read as standalone it has some ties to book 1 and I think it’s enjoyed more in order. The Fighter follows Deeks and Kena, there is plenty of suspense as well as romance. I did struggle a bit with this book at times, some parts felt a bit unrealistic or too convenient and I didn’t really care for the suspense elements due to my current reading mood. Sadly the book failed to fully grab and keep my attention. There were plenty of parts I did enjoy and some great scenes. I liked seeing Deeks and Kena getting to know each other and growing closer, they made for a great couple. I liked that Deeks had a good heart even with his fighter tendencies. It was nice seeing a bit of Annie and Michael again later in this book. And the epilogue is awesome too. I am looking forward to book 3.

Links:
– Goodreads
– Bookbub
– Amazon

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Bookbub.