Goodreads Blurb:

Jack Martin’s life feels like a dream come true. He’s surrounded by supportive friends, his music is thriving, and he’s head over heels for the boy of his dreams. Jack’s fairy tale seems complete. But as he enters his eleventh-grade year at Nolan High School, Jack soon learns that every fairy tale has its villains. In this gripping continuation of the bestselling modern, queer fairy tale Jack’s on Fire, Jack discovers that not all endings are as happy as they seem.

Join Jack as he navigates the many twists and turns of high school, friendship, and love. With its compelling exploration of chosen family and the complexities of young queer love, Jack’s Ever After will captivate you until the very last page. Discover what lies beyond the happily ever after in this stirring queer tale that will tug at your heartstrings and leave you yearning for more.

My Thoughts:

This was a wonderful and unexpected sequel to ‘Jack’s On Fire’. It is lovely when a sequel feels like it fits with it’s predecessor and this one did exactly that. I found I enjoyed reading about Jack and how his fairy tale life unfolded after the conclusion to the last book.

With the challenges of the last book resolved, all but one anyway, there were new challenges thrown at Jack that gave his character some interesting development. Especially with one particular new character, which brought out a side of Jack and his friends that made me see them in new light. It didn’t make me dislike them, but there was something very judgemental about them which I didn’t gel with – at least early on. While their judgements ended up pretty spot on, it felt like conclusions were jumped to and it felt a little out of character – even for Jack, who does have a past of dealing with bullies. So it definitely made reading this interesting.

Like with the last book, there felt like there was an overuse of the words ‘bro’ between Jack and his brother, and ‘babe’ and other pet names with Jack and his boyfriend. Nicknames and pet names can be sweet, but I do prefer them in moderation. This is something that brought me out of the novel when I was reading but I feel like there would be some people who wouldn’t mind it. I also found there were some parts of the novel that weren’t overly necessary, like Jack choosing what to wear and little scenes like that. They are sweet, but I feel they took away from the plot of the story.

The romance however, was just as sweet and supportive as it had bee in the first book. I liked reading about how Jack handled new challenges in the relationship and how the relationship developed over time. I also loved the honestly between the two brothers, and how they talked openly with each other. I also really liked how they still teased and bickered, making them feel more realistic.

Other than these little things, Jack’s ever after was a really sweet and joyful read. There is something so nice about reading about queer characters who do get their happy ending and get what they want. I recommend this for anyone who wants a quick, easy, and overall fun read!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for sending me this free eARC (eAdvanced Reader Copy). I am leaving this review voluntarily. This title was published July 11th 2023.