“This is why I read romance.” –Lauren Rowe, USA Today and Internationally bestselling authorThe next seductive, unforgettable stand-alone romance in the FIGHT FOR ME series from NYT & USA Today Bestselling Author A.L. Jackson . . . Kale Bryant. Arrogant. Gorgeous. Commanding.This ER doctor is married to his job. His only vice is one-night stands and short-lived flings. He learned a long time … flings. He learned a long time ago loving someone isn’t worth the risk.
Harley Hope Masterson. Beautiful. Brave. Sweet.
The owner of a small coffee shop knows what it’s like to struggle. Embroiled in a bitter divorce, she’s threatened with losing everything.
When Kale accepts a new position down the street from Hope’s shop, he begins to question every wall he’s built around his heart.
He wants her in a way he hasn’t wanted anyone.
One touch is fire.
One kiss, and he’s spinning out of control.
But taking her won’t come without consequences.
Hope is in for the fight of her life. One neither of them saw coming.
Now Kale must decide if loving her is worth risking it all.
She will fight with everything she has.
But sometimes even hope needs a hero . . .
“I devoured this gorgeous book. Don’t miss it–a five-star, must-read!” –Tia Louise, USA Today Bestselling Author
“Follow Me Back is not only a TOP 2018 READ but a LIFETIME READ too!” Karen, Bookalicious Babes Blog
“I know I have just read my blogs first ever 6-star read.” –Bangor Belle Book Besties
more
When I saw this cover, I just fell for it! Honestly, I’m a bit tired of seeing the half naked men on covers so for me to say that I loved a cover with a half naked man is saying something. I dislike the stereo-typical muscled-abs man on the front. How many real men look like that? How many real men smolder like that? Not my man, I can tell you that. I love stories that feel real and for me, that starts with the cover. So, even though AL Jackson went for a cover theme that I dislike, immensely, I did like this one. Maybe it was the font, I’m not sure, but I liked it.
This is only my second AL Jackson novel, and this was ultra emotional. Follow Me Back was a complete roller coaster where I felt like I was on a total ride! Luckily, the first book that I read was Show Me the Way, which is where I meet Kale (well we all met him but he’s mine). I really like the hot ER doctor profession. He was everything you’d thing a successful doctor would be… full of himself and a bit cocky with it but he was also charming at the same time. All good doctors need a pleasant bedside manner. Hope was a fantastic female character. She’s a super strong woman. Neither Kale or Hope was interested in a relationship but sometimes life has a plan for you whether you are on board or not!
I was completely tickled with the characters in this book. I was so happy to see the previous characters and check in on where they are and what they are doing. It’s like checking in on old friends. Kale and Hope had this incredible banter together. They were so fun to read about. AL Jackson is on point with this novel. It’s an enjoyable book that pulls you in with heartbreak and fun… it really is a good mix!
I received an ARC of this book with the hope that I will leave an Unbiased Opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that… my opinions.
I just spent five minutes staring at this screen trying to figure out where to start. I think I’m still a little bit overwhelmed with emotion from the magnificent, emotionally gripping ending of this book. It was so beautiful, y’all. So visceral. So easily ingrained on my heart.
So, yes. This story was amazing. It was filled with things I didn’t expect. Wonderful things. Things that sort of took this romance to the next level for me. It’s not just Kale and Hope, it’s the whole set-up, the secondary characters, and the way this story is so beautifully layered that my heart was all-in before my brain even realized what was going on.
But Kale and Hope? What a completely heartwarming, gut-wrenching, story. I mean, beware of emotional punches tucked within these pages, but know that they are cushioned by scenes and phrase that literally set my heart aflutter and made me catch my breath. There were certainly moments where I wanted to knock some sense into these characters (*side eyes Kale*), but in the end I could not have asked for a better resolution. The entire story, it’s just simply lovely. Highly recommend! ~ 4.5 Stars
5 Shortcake Stars!!!
Al Jackson continues to prove over and over again why she’s one of my absolute favorite authors. Not many authors have me laughing and giggling one minute and the next I’m crying while holding my breathe the next.
When I first got a glimpse of Kale in Show Me The Way I knew from his interactions with Frankie Leigh that I needed more from him. But, no joke I was so unprepared for Kale.
Kale had his heartbroken years ago. He lost the only women he ever loved. The signs were right there and he missed them. Kale refuses to fall in love again. His life revolves around his job and his friends. They’re his family.
But, one night at his friends bar changes everything. When he meets Hope something happens and then he turns him down flat. That’s never happened to him before and he’s not sure how to act. Days later and he’s still thinking about her.
Kale’s worked as a doctor in the emergency room for years. He is starting a new job in an office and he’s going to be a pediatric dr and he’s looking forward to it. On his way there he decided to stop at the new coffee shop that opened up right by his office. He’s shocked to see his Hope owns it. Before he realizes what he’s doing he’s pretty much begging for a date. With the promise of just one night and just dinner. Kale didn’t realize how much his life was going to change with just one night.
Hope is trying to start over. She’s got a new house. Her and her best friend Jenna opened up their coffee shop ‘A Drop of Hope’ . Most importantly she’s trying to keep her ex-husband away from her and their son Evan. Hope lives for Evan. He’s the best thing in her life and everyone’s life he enters. The last thing she needs is a guy like Kale entering it. But, he gets her to go out with him. And, after one night together she can’t stop thinking of him. But, you know the saying somethings are just too good to be true. Yes! Hope and Kale’s relationship has the breaks thrown on before they could floor the gas pedal. Evan’s health and happiness comes before her own and Kale’s one of the best Drs and things can get tricky. Too bad these two can’t seem to stay away from each other.
Holy holy cow!!! These two are smoking hot and when it’s the three of them they’ll melt your heart. Kale had me swooning with Frankie Leigh. But, with Evan you’ll just melt into a puddle. Seriously!! Kale is a protector to those he loves. He becomes very protective of Hope and Evan and will do anything to keep them safe. Hope hasn’t had it easy. Evan’s the best thing to happen to her and she won’t let anybody hurt him or take him away from her. Hope and her best friend Jenna are doing everything the best for him. No matter the consequences. Even though Kale throws a wrench in her plans, she’s got Jenna reminding her that she has to live a bit for herself. She was totally unprepared for what Kale brought into their lives.
Once I started this I couldn’t put it down. There was definitely times that things happened that I didn’t see coming. There was one time I legit thought the worst and yelled.
Al Jackson is the best of the best. Every book, every story is better then the last. So far the men and their women from Gingham Lakes are beautiful, strong, emotional, caring, loving people who are all about taking care of each other. They’re all a family. And, Ollie’s next and after reading both Rex and Kale’s stories I’m excited to get hers.
“For every heart broken, one was mended. For every life lost, there was one saved.”
A.L. Jackson has left me completely speechless! Follow Me Back is not only my top read of 2018 so far, but one of my favorite all-time books EVER! This book and the characters will completely melt your heart!
This is Kale’s story, and the woman, Hope, who captures this man’s heart is indeed special. Kale is complicated…sexy, sweet, and married to his job as a doctor. Hope is sweet, caring, and has the soul of a warrior. The two of them have spent years chained by their pasts but for two very different reasons. Both of them are hit by an explosive pull toward one another from their first meeting at the neighborhood bar. Kale is no stranger to the attention of women. He uses sex to feel a little bit of freedom, feeling “lost, unbound, and unchained.” He finds out very quickly that Hope isn’t the kind of woman he can just get lost in for one night. She makes that very clear. Yet, the two can’t stop thinking about each other. When he sees her again at her coffee shop, he can’t leave her alone. They continually feel that pull, but this is a romance that will pack a punch to their hearts, as well as you readers!
Both Kale and Hope have a lot in common. They can see that shared pain in each other, but Hope is in the fight for her life, and Kale will be drawn into it as well if he falls for her. Hope knows dangerous men, and Kale “oozes persuasion, dominance, and sex.” This makes him very dangerous to her. As she gets to know him, she also sees that he is “perceptive, kind, and intuitive.” She could fall for him so incredibly easily, but she isn’t sure that is wise.
What I loved about Kale was that he wanted to get “inside of her mind” as much as he wanted to get her in his bed. My heart hurt so much for him, and yet I fell so in love with him when he got to the crux of who Hope was in her soul. And, he fell even more in love with her. Their chemistry was insane, but it was so much more than lust.
“…Simmering between us like oen of those chaotic summer thunderstorms gathered over a lake. The kind of storm you knew was going to rock your entire world.”
I don’t think I have ever enjoyed watching a couple fall in love like I did Kale and Hope.
As with the earlier book and novella, a big part of the book is the relationship Kale has with his friends. I have to say I felt the same way about Hope’s relationship with Jenna. Both of them had such a unique, important friendship. Each of them shared joys with their friends as well as helping each other through the hard times.
Jackson has some surprises within the book that I will let her reveal to you as you read because they make the book even more special and heartfelt.
A.L. Jackson always writes from the heart, but she went to a completely different level with this book. She broke my heart and pieced it back together again, leaving me with a full heart and a smile on my face. This really is a fairy tale complete with a knight in shining armor and his princess! Her words are absolute poetry!!!!
***Read and Reviewed for Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews***
This book will pull all your heart strings. I laughed, cried and swooned. AL Jackson is an amazing storyteller. Kale and Hope will leave you with a major book hangover.
I believe this is the first book I’ve read since my dad passed… haven’t really been in the mood to read. I am blown away by this book. This story was cute, passionate, funny, nerve wrecking, and sad. Man the last third of the book had me in tears almost the whole time.
Just a strawberry short cake and a sex on a stick! But also. Knight and a princess.
Kale
Shortcake aka Hope
Evan
This is technically the second book in the Fight for Me series and I highly recommend the first if you haven’t picked it up yet. I really love this small town world that AL Jackson has built for us. And even though these are standalones, they are interconnected which means we get to see characters from previous books and that is probably my favorite part.
It took me a little while to get into Follow Me Back. I felt it was a little to start but I absolutely loved Hope and her super awesome son Evan. Kale was your typically Bachelor but I loved seeing the way he changed around Hope and Evan. And although it was slow to start, it was still funny, sweet, and a nail-biter at points. I also highly recommend reading the bonus scene when you are done. It really closes it all out.
Still Swooning hard!
That is the theme of this book to me when I read it.
I was instantly in love with Kale and his love for his job.
Hope is a strong woman who when she meets Kale, she has an instant attraction that they both can’t seem to fight.
A well rounded story of two tortured pasts that come together and help each other learn what it is like to be in love again.
Loved how much emotion poured off the pages as I read.
As I said, in the beginning, you will be swooning soo much from Kale’s actions and words.
Plenty of romance, sexy times and twists that kept my cherries afloat as well as bursting with excitement.
Go One Click it!
5 Cherries Popped
It’s not everyday I find a novel that has the ability to bring me to my knees. It’s once in a lifetime when I find a story that sticks with me even long after I finish reading. I have a feeling every time I hear the name A.L. Jackson the first thing that will come to mind is Follow Me Back.
Follow Me Back is a novel that revolves around one woman, one man, and one very sweet little boy with a bad heart. While I was reading this novel, I had to tell myself (on numerous occasions) this is just a novel, this isn’t real life. But still I became invested in this world and these characters. My heart broke along with theirs. I cried, I laughed, and I definitely swooned but who wouldn’t when it comes to Kale Bryant…Hello Doctor!!!
Harley ‘Hope’ Masterson has troubles a mile wide and an ocean deep, so when Kale Bryant pops into her life she’s adamant that he stay away but her heart and body isn’t catching up to what her head is telling her to do.
Kale Bryant is living with extreme guilt after losing the only love his heart has ever known. While out celebrating his new promotion his eyes wander to a woman sitting alone at the bar. Little does he know everything he once thought he wanted out of life is about to drastically change.
Kale and Hope were everything! Kale is sexy as sin and Hope is sweet as sugar. Their chemistry is the perfect slow build kind full of sexual tension and naughty banter which concludes in a firework show that outshines all!
But…there was someone who stole the entire show and my heart…Evan Masterson. This little boy brought tears to my eyes and a smile to my face. When you put a kid in a novel, one who’s been through hell and back, and then you give him the personality of an angel…that’s my kryptonite and I’m a legit goner! This little man is the true definition of strength, he’s a freaking superhero!
Overall, Follow Me Back is a captivating story full of love and angst. My heart hurt and still hurts for these characters and the tragedies they suffered through.
If you asked me today, What is your favorite A.L. Jackson novel, the answer would be Follow Me Back and probably will always be Follow Me Back. Thank you for writing not only a heartbreaking story but also a story full of truth and honesty, a story that has the power to not only break hearts but also heal hearts.
Wow!!! What a story this was. I knew by the blurb it was going to be really good but I never expected this story to take me by storm. This 5 star masterpiece made me feel so much.
Hope & Kale don’t have time or space in their lives to meet someone. Finding the right person happens when she least expect it. This is their journey. I don’t want to say too much, in order to spoil anything.
This story had so many shocking twist that I was left baffled and speechless. There is one that I never saw coming. I was like OMG what happened. I had to reread that part twice. There was always something happening, it was never dull. Beautifully written romantic suspense that had me hooked from the very first page read to the very last one. Bottomline is this story is a must read.
I would consider this story a standalone even if it’s part of the Fight for Me series. Told in a dual POV with an HEA that left me content and smiling. I strongly recommend this story.
If you are looking for something that is incredible. amazing, heart wrenching, heart warming, will have you holding onto each word written then this book is for you. Hope would do anything for her son. She would protect him with her last breath. All she wants is to live her life with her son Evan and be left alone from her soon to be ex. But he can’t leave it alone. She has made a life with Evan, her love for him knows no limits. She is his heart and he is hers. Kale loved once and will never love again. He is devoted to his patients and his inner crowd. He will not allow himself to let anyone else in. Until he meets Hope.
Both Kale and Hope are so reluctant to let anyone in. But the heart knows when that special someone that you are supposed to be with comes into your life. You can try to ignore it but it will happen. A L Jackson does such an amazing job uniting these three characters. I say three, meaning Kale, Hope and Evan. From the first time you meet Evan you fall in love with him. The tears started and never ended with this book. There were tears of sadness, tears of disappointment and tears of joy and tears of happiness. This book has it all. A story that should be on every TBR list. It will not disappoint you just as A L Jackson will not disappoint you. A true 5-star read.
4.5 Stars
Fight For Me the second title in the Fight For Me series, is a beautiful, powerful, heartbreaking, emotional, intense and moving love story.
I was incredibly eager to read Kale Bryant’s story after he was introduced in the previous titles. A.L. Jackson has crafted a pair of characters that are incredibly endearing. Kale is kind, caring and sweet, but very reluctant to believe in love or commit to a relationship of any kind. The façade Kale presents is one of a put together charismatic, charming, cocky, flirtatious, dedicated and sexy doctor, but it’s all in an attempt to hide pain from his past.
Hope’s life is incredibly complex, full of stress and anxiety, and the last thing she needs is a romantic entanglement. Strong doesn’t seem like a word that is descriptive enough to describe Hope, she’s fearless, despite being in a helpless situation. Hope is incredibly hard working, and loving, life is a constant struggle to just keep her head above water, and she struggles to trust having been burned in the past.
Parts of this story line completely resonated with me. I had an intense personal, deeply emotional connection to aspects of this story line. It’s incredibly difficult to express the gamut of emotions I experienced whilst reading this story, without revealing way too much of the plot. I laughed, I smiled, but most of all I cried ugly tears whilst reading Follow Me Back. A.L. Jackson writes in such a vivid and perceptive way that makes you feel like you are experiencing the characters highs and lows and can see yourself on the streets of Gingham Lakes.
Hope and Kale have an immediate connection and the sparks fly. They share an undeniable rapport, their relationship is passionate, sweet, romantic, and intense with banter that is witty, and flirtatious.
The twists and turns will keep you glued to this story. Along the way little bread crumbs of clues are dropped until the climax of the plot.
Characters who appeared in the previous titles in the series, appear within the story line and their own tale of finding happiness continues. It added an extra element of depth to the plot, and has left me even more eager for the next title in the series.
Follow me Back is the second book in the series Fight for me the author A.L. Jackson and it is impossible not to compare this book with the first in the series. And this book is infinitely better than the story of Rex.And all that was missing in that particular story the author filed that story and created an emotional story that was impossible I don’t fall in love.
I have a thing for good guys broken, and Kale have that here, he is a successful doctor but that carries with him a big weight. But the star of this book for me was certainly Hope.She’s the one heroine that inspires us. I loved her and your strength to fight for the most important person in your life. Loved your hope that everything would be all right. She was the one who beat me in that book for all she’s done.
The journey of these two characters was not easy, predictable and without anguish. On the contrary, they had to work very hard. This book is an emotional book, that messed with my emotions.I laughed, I cried, I had fun and I sighed with these characters, every page I wanted more and more of them and it was hard to say goodbye to them. And that’s how I know this book won me over.
Follow me Back is one of those stories that I don’t have a negative thing to say. I loved the story, the characters, it was good to see familiar faces, and I loved every feeling that that story ignited in me. So I can only wish that the next book in this series is as good as this one.