This is an intriguing story that draws you in from the start, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Ezra and Lizzie have to deal with their abusive stepfather, and this puts a strain on their family lives. Jonas and Ezra are best friends, but Ezra has always lived in Jonas’ shadow. Now that the two have a successful business, Ezra decides to branch out on his own, but his actions put lives at risk. Lizzie is Ezra’s younger sister by 5-years, but there has never been a closeness between them. Ezra considers Jonas “off limits” as far as Lizzie is concerned, but the attraction between the two cannot be denied. All in all a wonderful, engaging story that has lots to offer the reader.
For Ezra, that’s it; he is leaving home forever. 5-years ago Ezra made his half-sister, Lizzie, a promise, a promise she has thought about over and over; now she is here to see if it means anything or not, as she turns up with a black eye and a duffel bag. Lizzie feels guilty about the accident she was involved in; for 2-years she barely left her room, suffering one painful day after another; now she feels pathetic waiting for her older brother, practically a stranger, to rescue her. It is obvious that Ezra doesn’t want her here, but Lizzie is going to make him uphold his promise, even if she has no clue what she is going to do with herself anymore. As Ezra’s best friend, Jonas has been a part of Lizzie’s life for a few years now; she knows all about the drug dealing, the partying and the fights. Jonas and his skater friends are notorious around San Diego, and Lizzie has always been both afraid, and fascinated by Jonas, but is the feeling mutual. In all his years selling weed, Jonas never thought he would actually make a living from it, but now he and Ezra have a successful business known as Half Pipe, as well as an interest in the skate scene, where Jonas is clearly well-liked; all Lizzie wants to do is get to know Jonas better. Jonas gets a glimpse of the Lizzie he remembers from when she was younger, but he also thinks about himself back then too. As a child, Jonas was always willing to hurt and fight to get what he wanted, because violence was the only way he knew, escaping into anger and fantasy to vent all his frustrations out on the world; it was what his father taught him. Now Jonas is trying to be a better man for himself, for Lizzie and for Ezra; but he still believes he is the kind of man Lizzie should avoid, until she issues him a challenge. Now a legitimate businessman, it is hard for Jonas to shake off his reputation. Lizzie wonders how Jonas the drug dealer has turned into Jonas the responsible adult. Ezra has been doing a lot of business lately without Jonas, but with running Half Pipe and everything else in his life, he has been turning a blind eye. Jonas has taken care of Ezra for the past five-years, teaching him everything he knew. That is a problem now; the man Jonas was even just a year ago wasn’t thinking of his future. Having lived in Jonas’ shadow, Ezra is doing the same exact thing and Jonas doesn’t know how to help him; he is in way over his head, has a temper, is stubborn and is not exactly responsible. Jonas can fight, but Ezra has never had to, but this time Ezra has angered the one person in the world he knows he never should have and there are consequences. Putting those at Half Pipe at risk, Jonas has no option but to give Ezra an ultimatum and Ezra knows he means it. But has Jonas gone too far this time? Has he scared Lizzie one time too many times? Does she see him as a bad and dangerous man, just like he has everyone else believing, or is he so much more than a combination of rumors and hearsay? It is time to find out if there is any future for them. A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and my comments here are my honest opinion.