MIDNIGHT BLUE by L J SHEN

‘Alex Winslow didn’t do love. He only did hate. I wondered if he knew that.’

If you love your book boyfriends on the broody, cocky, arseholery and tortured side, then you’re gonna love angst ridden rock god, Alex Winslow. But be warned….this quintessential bad boy British rocker will test your heart and stretch your resolve to its limits with his jerkish behaviour in this gritty romance.

‘He was no knight in shining armor, a far cry from a savior. He was just a broken, sad boy who was given a great gift that put him on display for the world to see and judge.’

Alex and Indie were opposite in every way – despite the struggles and tragedies of her past, Indie retained a loyal, loving, kind and thoughtful outlook, but she was no pushover, going toe to toe with the jaded, bitter and cynical Alex who felt as though the whole world was against him, but really, no one despised Alex as much as he hated himself for what he deemed his ‘selling out’ of his music.

“Do you ever feel so lonely you’re not sure people are real anymore?” he asked
“All the time.”

The story picks up six months after the prologue when Alex is out of rehab after a very public meltdown at a music awards ceremony, in which he verbally attacked his ex-best friend Will Bushell and his ex-girlfriend, who had cheated on Alex with Will.

Committed to a three month world tour, twenty seven year old singer/songwriter, Alex is despondent, after having lost his passion for the industry and finding his word have dried up. Not the best position to be considering the record company wants him to write a kick arse new album.

Indigo “Indie” Bellamy has everything to gain and nothing to lose by agreeing to ‘babysit’ the wayward Alex – $300,000 for 3 months work – ensuring Alex stays clean and trouble free. How hard can it be? Indie is desperate for the money to help her family, so it’s a sacrifice she’s willing to endure. However, Indie didn’t expect her treacherous heart to fall for the caustic, mean Alex. In return, Alex discovers his inspiration in Indie, with the words and music once again flowing.

“I don’t want to fall in love with you,” she croaked.
“You don’t seem to have much choice,” I answered.

An angsty, emotional, raw and passionate journey. There were times our hearts took a beating and we really did wonder if Alex would ever sort his shit out and see what was right in front of him. This guy had issues a mile long and his cynicism and mistrust caused him to react and petulantly lash out in order to hurt those around him.

‘When Alex was hurting, he wanted the entire world to hurt with him. And in that moment in time, I was his world.’

What an addictive read which captured the tortured hero perfectly! However what it did lack for us was that intense rock star feel we crave. The music references throughout were fab, however we missed the gripping, adrenaline pumping rock stage presence we love in a rock star romance, living the concert from the other side. We wanted to be ‘in the moment’ with Indie and Alex.

“Are you happy, Alex?”
“I’m an artist. My job is not to be happy. My job is to feel, to suffer, and to conjure the same feelings in others.”

There was also a particular twist we felt was unnecessary, and left us scratching our heads, but these were small issues in an otherwise scorching, raw, angst ridden, gripping and fabulous story that kept us glued to our Kindles right until the end…and that epilogue …. Perfection! Talk about swoooon!!

‘Once upon a time, a mere mortal fell in love with a rock god. You probably know this is not a fairy tale by now. Mortals and gods don’t mix.’