SUSTAINED – THE LEGAL BRIEFS SERIES #2 by EMMA CHASE

‘The look in her face is everything I want it to be. Gentle, adoring – like I’m the hero of the story.’

Well didn’t we just fall in absolute book love with Sustained. Everything about this book was top end fiction that had us unable to stop reading for any of life’s little interruptions. We really need to reaffirm what we’ve always said and that is the fact that Emma Chase is the queen of male POV’s. She writes them so well that there is never any question that we are inside the head of a man. And what a man Jake is. Under his pristine made-to -measure suits hides a multitude of sin. The kind of sin that had our hearts beating and our pulses racing. Jake is without question one of our all-time favourite book boyfriends. He made us laugh, he made us swoon, he made us teary and he showed us his huge…..HEART (you perv’s hahahaha). Wow what an ode to all that’s perfect man.

“You deserve a man who knows what the right thing is…I want….Christ, I want to be that for you.”

Jake doesn’t do relationships – he doesn’t even date. Rather he’s a bit of a male slapper; a sexy defence lawyer unwilling to see his women more than once. He’s not interested in details or back stories, he sees something he wants and he gets it but on his terms. He’s a success in pretty much every aspect of his life. Well……

“A knight in tarnished armor is still a knight.”

Now, right from the onset we knew there was something bloody special about Jake. He actually wears his heart on his sleeve and what a giving, understanding and caring heart he has. Everything Jake felt we did too as his POV was completely convincing and insightful. The whole way through we never doubted, questioned or disbelieved.

‘I want everything – all the secret, sweetest parts of her – but if this is all I get to have tonight? It’s enough.’

Jake meets Chelsea and his life changes in a way he could never have predicted or expected. His life is almost not his own as everything he believed, stood for and took as a given changes in the most surprising of ways. He slowly takes on a new role whilst embarking on a different direction with the sweet, admirable, honest and lovable Chelsea and crew.  Jake made us laugh to the point of snorting with eyes watering one minute then had us melting in a puddle on the floor the next.  Then we have the kids….oh the kids.

“How many kids live in this house exactly?” It’s starting to feel like they’re cockroaches – see one, and you can bet there’s fifty more crawling around inside the walls. I shiver at the thought. – Jake

“Six.” – Chelsea

We loved them all, we loved Chelsea with the kids and we LOVED Jake with the kids. We just loved the whole damn thing.

Sustained is so flawlessly written, so bang on with the male voice and situational comedic moments. The characters shone and were so well developed as was the storyline. It felt honest, pure and incredibly romantic. It just flowed so beautifully with an originality and quirkiness bearing the stamp of Emma Chase at her very best. We highly recommend Sustained to every reader who loves humour, romance and a bit of angst in their fiction. This is a TB must read!

**Reviewed from an ARC provided by Gallery Books, with thanks**