The Boyfriend's Back

JT McNulty hasn't been back to his small Pennsylvania hometown in years. His parents kicked him out of the house after a heated argument about his girlfriend, and neither side has reached out to the other in the intervening years. But after his mom's sudden death in a car accident, he comes home for the funeral, and ends up agreeing to stay for a few days to help care for his dad (who is bound to a wheelchair after an accident at the family garage).

JT's return causes some huge complications for Hailey Maddox. For the last fifteen years, she's allowed her daughter Olivia (and pretty much everyone else in town) to believe that JT is her father. JT was gone anyway, and the truth about Olivia's parentage was both messy and embarrassing. When her daughter attends JT's mom's funeral (and appears to have some sort of relationship with JT's dad), Hailey knows that she has to tell everyone the truth – or at least part of it.

Shortly after the funeral, Hailey's car gets a flat tire, which JT helps change. It's evident that she's still as attracted to him as she ever was, and he seems to share her feelings. But there are many complications between them. JT knows better than anyone that Olivia is not his child. Though Hailey was his girlfriend at the time she got pregnant, they never slept together. Hailey had a bit of a dark side that JT didn't know about. She feels that he never really knew who she was, but enjoyed the "idea" of her. Further complicating matters is JT's relationship with his irascible father. His inability to walk after the accident is at least partially self-willed, as he has refused physical therapy. But guess who runs the best PT clinic in town? Hailey, of course. Jack agrees to attend therapy as long as Hailey is the one he sees. He's partly motivated by match-making, partly motivated by his friendship with Hailey's daughter.

A reader going by the back of the book might assume this is a secret baby book. I know almost no one who would cite that as her favorite plot, mostly because it strains both logic and ethics. This really isn't a secret baby book at all; it's clear from the outset that Olivia is not JT's child. And once Olivia's father is revealed, it's clear why Hailey was keeping his identity a secret.

Overall, I found the plot quite interesting. Hailey is not your typical small-town girl. I found her mix of youthful indiscretion and adult control freak intriguing and a little different. And she and JT don't simply rush back into each other's arms as if nothing had happened. Similarly, JT's issues with his dad are not something solved in an afternoon; they have a lot to work through.

The only issue I really had was that about three quarters of the way through, the pace accelerated so all the problems could be resolved. It didn't quite work with the slower way matters were introduced in the beginning of the novel, so it left me somewhat unsatisfied. To be fair, timing can be tough with series romances, especially when the author has a lot to say. This book could easily have benefited from another fifty pages or so.

That said, The Boyfriend's Back is a thoughtful series romance. If you like a quick read that's a little out of the ordinary, you could certainly do worse.

-- Blythe Barnhill

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