Bastard - J.L. Perry

Title: Bastard
Author: J.L. Perry
Rating: 3/5

Thanks to NetGalley and J.L. Perry for letting me receive a digital copy of this book before its official release date.

My name is Carter Reynolds. I was born a bastard and I’ll die a bastard. I learnt it at a young age, and nothing and nobody can change that. I’m on a one-way path of destruction, and God help anyone who gets in my way. I hate my life. Actually, I hate pretty much everything.

That’s until I meet the kid next door. Indi-freakin’-ana. My dislike for her is instant. From the moment I lay eyes on her, she ignites something within me. She makes me feel things I thought I was incapable of feeling. I don’t like it, not one bit. When she looks at me with her big, beautiful, haunting green eyes, it’s like she can see into the depths of my soul. It freaks me the hell out. She’s like sunshine and rainbows in my world of gloom and doom. I hate sunshine and rainbows.

• • • •

I’m Indiana Montgomery. My friends call me Indi. Despite losing my mum at the age of six, I have a wonderful life and great friends. My dad more than makes up for the fact that I only have one parent. I’m his little girl, the centre of his world. I adore him.

When Carter Reynolds moves in next door, my life takes a turn for the worse. He’s gorgeous, sinfully hot, but that’s where my compliments end. He seems hell-bent on making my life miserable. He acts tough, but when I look into his eyes I don’t see it. I see hurt and pain. To me, he seems lost.

I should hate him for the way he treats me, but surprisingly I don’t. If anything, I feel sorry for him. I want to help him find peace. Help him find the light that I know is buried somewhere within his darkness, but he won’t have a bar of it.

He’s warned me time and time again to stay away, but I can’t. I’m drawn to him for some reason. He’s always referring to himself as a bastard. That may be true, but to me, he’s more like a beautifully, misunderstood bastard. Whether he likes it or not, I refuse to give up on him.

I was surprised, because the other day, I saw a real copy of the book online and it seemed to be average length, but when I read the digital edition, it appeared so long. It was so hard for me to finish reading this book. Not because it was bad, but because it was so long and my eyes really hurt from reading on my cell phone. Guess it's my own fault.

Whatever, let's begin with the original review... Bad boys are every reader's weakness, I guess, so it's pretty easy to fall for the main character, Carter, in this book. In the beginning you find out what was said to him, so that he still thinks of himself as a bastard. One day, being seventeen, his mother marries someone and they both move in with that guy. Carter can't stand him, but his new next-door neighbour is a cute girl named Indiana, who he seems hooked on right from their very first meeting, which involves Indiana's dog Lassie.

Oh, Lassie/Larry, you cute little dog. Seriously, I don't enjoy reading about pets so much, but I just loved Indiana's dog. Also, the relationship Carter had with her dog. It's just so nice.

Of course, Indiana is interested in her new neighbour as well, but she also notices his behaviour. He threatens her boyfriend (which was totally right, I think. That guy was a huge douchebag!), isn't too shy about his intentions with girls and truly acts like a bastard. But then they, Carter and Indiana, open up to each other about their pasts, and finally they end up as a couple, but not really a couple at the same time.

Everything could be perfect for them, but Carter decides to leave town. He suffers too much because of the bad behaviour of his stepdad and can't see himself sharing a house with that man any longer. While reading this, you'll feel troubled, because you know he does the right thing and yet you don't want him to leave Indiana. And I think that's what makes a good book a good book - you can relate to the characters and their decisions. You have no idea whether it's a good or a bad thing, but you know that you'd have a hard time making decisions as well, so why can't the character?!

A couple of years later, Carter is faced to return to the town due to an incident. Along with that, he and Indiana meet again and have to figure out how to go from here, though Indiana seems to have moved along after her dream guy, Carter, left her all these years ago.

I hope, as always, that I didn't give away too much already. I was really excited about reading this book, partly because I made the mistake and read J.B. Perry instead of J.L. Perry, so I thought Jolene B. Perry had a new pen name, haha. I'm so sorry Jodi, because you're an amazing author! I just hadn't heard from you up until Bastard. I have to admit, that it took some time for me to finish reading this book (and now also writing the review, I'm sorry... Again). It just to go on and go on and go on... When I actually saw a physical copy of it on Facebook, I was surprised to see it wasn't a 700-pages novel, as I thought, haha.

Coming to speak of what I didn't like... That's an easy one, because I instantly knew as soon as I got to that part. When Carter and Indiana meet again after five years, destiny has got other plans for Indiana, meaning her health (is that a spoiler? I hope not!). I didn't like that, because it just didn't feel natural to me. That's probably because I never enjoy reading about health-situations in books, I don't know. But you know, that is my personal view. Others may think it's the best part of this book, so I'll just stay quiet.

I think this book is perfect for all those young adult lovers, who want a sneak peak into the world of new adult romance. Or the other way around, really. It has got these nice and sweet scenes and these dirty and rough scenes. If you're looking for a new book boyfriend and think the cover is promising of finding a great one, you won't be disappointed, let me tell you. Carter is very yummy. I liked this book, I'm glad I requested it and got accepted.