Duo review by Annika & JenB
TITLE: Jude 
SERIES: Lucky #3
AUTHOR: Garrett Leigh
PUBLISHER: Fox Love Press
RELEASE DATE: March 24, 2019
LENGTH: 1667 KB
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Isha has spent the last year watching his BFF get his happily-ever-after. He’s proud of Dom, but…it hurts to see him so free while Isha’s love life is still on lockdown. Only Isha’s ex-wife knows the secret that he’s kept caged for so long—that he’s queer too, and he’s lonely.
Jude’s too chained to his work to notice what he’s missing by being terminally single, but a new face in the village soon catches his attention. City boy Isha is gorgeous, and when he starts to haunt Jude’s reptile shop as well as the hook-up app on his phone, he’s a welcome distraction from Jude’s business problems.
For a control freak like Isha, letting Jude under his skin is an existential meltdown, but Jude’s not in the market to be anyone’s queer crisis, not when he’s facing troubles of his own. Unlocking their lives could push both men apart forever, but it might be a risk worth taking if sharing is the key to their happy future
ANNIKA’S REVIEW:
The last book in the series missed the mark for me, so I went into this book without any expectations, good or bad. But, almost from the beginning of this book I knew it was going to be different. That it was going to work for me, it had a vibe to it. It spoke to me and I got invested in a way I never got with Cash.
Isha; closeted and bisexual and father of two adorable kids. In the past he hasn’t exactly been the father of the year – being too busy working. However, he’s trying to change and a step towards that is organising his son’s eighth birthday party. Well, that and his wife isn’t going near it as it’s going to be held at a local reptile shop. Isha’s not a fan either, but he figured it was high time to step up. Little did he know that that shop and its owner would turn his would upside down in more ways than one…
Isha and Jude had some major chemistry, in and out of the bed (or whatever surface they happened to be on). It was tangible and there from the start. Jude had this kind of energy that really drew you in and held you captive. Everyone around him couldn’t help but to gravitate towards him. Me included. I wish that there had been much more focus on him in this book, but that might just be me being greedy.
Isha was without a doubt my least favourite character in this book, I never really warmed to him. He was a hot mess to be honest. He was constantly running hot and cold. Running from everyone and everything. From Jude, from his kids, from his friends. But mostly running from himself. From who he was and what he wanted. I don’t mind that as such, but at some point it gets tedious, not going anywhere. I needed him to stop running, and be the adult he was supposed to be. I don’t mean coming out by shouting it from the rooftops or anything major. But stop hurting everyone by pushing them away would be a good start.
I hate that he ran from his kids, that he didn’t even know them. That they never really counted on him. Expected him to ignore them when he was there. That he was so insecure and unsure in regards to them. It’s also one of the things that made me connect to this book. The characters were flawed, and in Isha’s case, majorly so. They were human and it made me believe in them.
Despite my dislike of one of the main characters, I still enjoyed this book quite a bit. I did read most of it in one go after all. Wanted that happily ever after for Jude mostly, but also wanting to see Isha change and be truly happy. And going by that epilogue, Jude had some major impacts on the entire family 😉
ANNIKA’S RATING: 
JEN’S REVIEW:
The previous book in this series didn’t really work for me, but Ms. Leigh is back on track with this story. Her stories deliver complex characters and British humor and tone, and I just knew the last story was a fluke for me.
We met Isha in the first book. It was easy to feel for him and what he was going through. He was a closeted workaholic who only shared his secret with his ex-wife. His experience with men to date has been strictly hookups, so he is a bit lost when it comes to actually having feelings for one. His floundering (while annoying at times) was completely understandable given his circumstances. I didn’t fall in love with him, but I totally got him. The secondary issue he faced was his children and trying to be a more present figure in their lives. This is what ultimately leads him to Jude’s front door, or his shop to be more exact.
I loved Jude from the get go. He was coping with his disability and devoting time to his reptiles and shop which left him little time to explore any type of relationship. That all changes when he and Isha figure things out. They share some amazing chemistry, and it was fun to watch it become more. This story switches POVs, and I admit I looked more forward to Jude’s side of things. He totally made this book worth it to me.
All in all, this was a nice installment to get this series back on track. The writing was enjoyable, with the added bonus of cameos from some of the other characters. I’m looking forward to seeing with Ms. Leigh comes up with next.
JEN’S RATING:
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