Fortunate Son by Jay Crownover Pages: 227
Series: Forever Marked #1
Genres: New Adult
Setting: Austin, TX and Denver, CO
Source: ARC
Also in this series: Prodigal Son, Son of a Gun
Also by this author: Asa, Built, Charged, Honor, Retreat, Riveted, Salvaged, Shelter, Unbroken, Justified, Unforgiven, Blacklisted, Prodigal Son, Son of a Gun
Goodreads
Ry Archer and Bowe Keller are as different as night and day. But that doesn’t stop the childhood frenemies from reconnecting whenever one of them needs some help tackling any of life’s major puzzles, like figuring out why getting what you always thought you wanted isn’t living up to all the hype. They might constantly rub each other the wrong way (except for the times when they rub each other the really-really right way), but there is no denying they’ve always made one hell of a great team. They manage to balance each other out… when they aren’t driving each other crazy.
For Ry, he thought he had the perfect girl, the one who was going to run headfirst into a methodically planned future. He was going to marry young and have the same kind of legendary, life-long romance his parents did… or so he believed. His girl was going to stand by his side as he chased his dream of being a professional football player all the way to the NFL.
He was wrong.
Now, Ry’s gotta figure out the difference between a bruised heart and a broken one, and the only person who can teach him the difference is Bowe.
Bowe always felt like she had to run before she learned to walk to keep up with her father’s musical legacy. He’s her hero, and she wants nothing more than to make him proud. Bowe’s about to figure out that maybe she wasn’t meant to be in a rock and roll band, and that it is entirely possible she let her father’s success cloud her idea of what making music should be. Bowe needs to find her own path to fame, and there’s a good chance she wouldn’t be brave enough or bold enough to start over if Ry Archer hadn’t pushed his way back into her life when she least expected it.
Some days they’re enemies. Other days they’re lovers. For a while, they were strangers. But now, it feels more like they might’ve always been soulmates.
Eventually, Ry and Bowe realize that letting go of an old dream and creating a new one is much easier to do with the right person by your side.
I love 2nd generation stories but I absolutely died for Fortunate Son! Rule and Shaw’s perfect son and Jet and Ayden’s quirky daughter! I adored this for so many reasons, but the biggest is that Crownover wrote this for her fans. She gave us this and I am so thankful.
Ry Archer is the perfect son-well behaved, good at everything, and has his whole life planned. Bowe Keller doesn’t have any of that. Fortunate Son sees both having a classic new adult wake up of suddenly realizing they don’t have the answers. Bowe was sure she wanted to be in a band just like her dad. Her first sort of major gig is a wake up for her that it isn’t at all what she wants. Ry’s breakup with Aston leads him to realize maybe he doesn’t WANT all the things he thought he did. Honestly, I cried through like the middle half of this book because I FELT everything they went through. It was like reliving all the tough memories of my 20’s.
Crownover has always been gifted with making readers feel everything and Fortunate Son delivers in spades. Her writing is emotional, raw, and sometimes heartbreaking. Her stories always make me feel wrung out (in a good way) because they hit close to home. While I have no idea what its like to be in a band or play college football, I know what its like to have your heart bruised or realize your plan is no longer something you want. I loved that Ry is much more like Shaw than Rule. Hearing his thoughts about his struggles to connect with his dad at times was so brilliant. Of course he struggles with his relationship with Rule-everyone does! He has his mom kind, compassionate heart. It made me melt.
Fortunate Son will be a delight to readers who are new to Crownover’s stories because it is brilliant in its new adult perfection. Fans of the Marked Men will fall in love all over again, and perhaps even deeper this time with the stories of the kids of the men and women we loved years ago.
- POV: dual 1st
- Tears: yes
- Trope: second chance, friends to lovers, opposites attract
- Triggers: none
- Series/Standalone: standalone
- Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
- HEA: View Spoiler »
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authors like Penelope Douglas, Monica Murphy, Elle Kennedy, Sarina Bowen, Abbi Glines…then you will probably like Fortunate Son!
Fortunate Son
I really enjoyed Rule / Shaw’s story but never got around to any more in the series. Someday. Fantastic review!
I adore that entire series and the spin off (Saints of Denver) so there was NO WAY I was gonna miss this one. It was so good.
This sounds so good! I am so excited to get back into this world.
I loved everything about this book!
I am ridiculously excited for this one! I adore the Marked Men series and have reread it so many times. I’m trying to hold off until this one releases in audio (which is supposed to be any time now) but I might have to cave and download the Kindle version.