Barely

Near Miss #3

by Amy Booker

All who wander may not be lost, but you just jumped off the damned map.

Jude Lockwood loves two things in life: fantasy novels and making music. A self-proclaimed player, Jude doesn’t have any room in his rockstar life for feelings or commitment.

Ren Scott loves two things in life: her record store and her baby daughter, Charlotte. Independent and newly single, Ren is struggling to find any time to manage her store while taking care of her daughter, much less date.

When Jude returns home to Los Angeles from a whirlwind tour, his offer to help with Charlotte (a.k.a. “Charlie”) turns into a confusing attachment to his best friend and her baby. Soon, all the lines Jude and Ren have drawn between each other are blurring.

With the heart of a little girl in the mix, can they make the leap from best friends to something more? Or is the risk of ruining a decade-long friendship too much?

Book #3 in the Near Miss rock star romance series. The series consists of stand-alone novels following the trials and tribulations of the members of the band Indigo King.

Near Miss Series:

Almost
So Close
Barely

Genres: Romance, Friends To Lovers, Fiction, Contemporary

364 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 28, 2022

About the author

Amy Booker is a full-time author and former musician now living her passion of writing complex contemporary romances that immerse readers into the realities—both beautiful and gritty—of life on stage and behind the scenes. Most feature rockstars, while some venture into the glitz of Vegas.

With over a dozen novels under her belt, Amy draws from her own experience to pen authentic plots and multidimensional characters. Never one to shy away from tough topics, her books tackle real situations with emotional depth.

When she's not crafting her next book, you can find Amy embarking on thrilling travels, getting lost in audiobooks, catching Arsenal matches, or tuning into the Critical Role D&D show. She shares her home with rescue pup Gunner and has an adult son with special needs who fills her days with both challenges and immense love.

Stay up-to-date with Amy’s latest heartfelt releases on www.amybookerauthor.com.

Reviews

[Doris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jude, Ren and Charlie

Jude is a member of the band Indigo King and they are just returning from their tour. Jude hasn’t seen his best friend since he left and Ren has always been that calm place for Jude. Ren runs a record store and is now trying to raise her baby daughter by herself since the father won’t step up. Jude takes it upon himself to help his best friend out by watching Charlie. With all this time they are spending together the friendship line is getting a little blurry.

These two had a slow burn that could have picked up a little faster but as a whole this was a good book.

[Lynne Cuda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 3rd book in the seriesNear Miss follows the 3rd Indigo Kings’ band member Jude. We’ve enjoyed Jude’s rather colorful language along with his comprehensive vocabulary for the first 2 books. He labels himself a ladies man. What will we find out about him when the Indigo Kings come back from tour?

Jude always seeks out his best friend Ren whom he hasn’t seen since he’s been on tour. She’s his calm place. But now there’s the addition of Ren’s baby girl Charlotte whom Jude decides to call Charlie (much better!) Jude has to make sure they are okay.

He tries to get the deadbeat dad to man up but that may not work and it’s not going to work for Ren. And Jude is catching feelings for Ren and Charlie. What!?! The Lothario of Indigo Kings has feelings? What does he do? He stays away. From his best friend of 11 years.

Makes you wonder how this will turn out, right?
Read it!!

The series is good. All 3 books are good. I do think they drag a little, with the angst and worrying. But the characters are all likable and the author gets you to care about what happens to them so you’ll keep reading.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. It is a slow burn friends to lovers story with the added bonus of baby Charlie. Honestly, I hope Amy writes a book about her when she is older because she stole the show here. Aside from Charlie, Rena and Jude were great characters. I love their relationship and banter together. There wasn't anything I would change about this book. Even Brad the Dad was so well written for who he was that I couldn't find fault with his character. Obviously his character in the book is awful, but he had to be for this story to work out.

I need to start off with Jude. This man is written by a woman. Lol. He is well read (HELLO LOTR!!!), tatted, sarcastic, a rockstar, and adores his best friend Charlie. I mean Ren. The care this man takes to help Ren out with Charlie and the bond he forms with Charlie is *swoon worthy*. Jude and Ren have been friends for almost 11 years and he has kept her a secret from his bandmates because she is his safe space when he is back in LA. When Ren suggests he create a dating profile on a site, he gets confused because he is starting to realize his feelings for her are more than friendly. He makes an agreement to if she does as well.

Ren is a spitfire and mom to Charlotte (who everyone seems to call everything other than her actual name). She is trying her best to juggle being a single mother and business owner. Her Dad has been helping her out since Brad abandoned them. When Jude comes back from touring he starts helping out with Charlie when he can. He is somehow a Baby Whisperer for Charlie. When she realizes her feelings for him are taking a turn, she tells him to sign up for a dating service. She agrees to sign up as well and the matches start. Will one of them be Jude? Does he feel the same about her?.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Caitlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was both adorable and aggravating. It's adorable because of Charlie and because I love that the main characters have been friends for a long long time. I enjoyed the humor/sarcasm throughout the book. It's aggravating because it took most of the book for the two main characters to figure their feels out. You just want to lock them in a room and force it by about 60% of the way through reading. It's definitely what I would consider a SLOW SLOW BURN. If you like the build up, you will like this book.

Jude is awesome. I love his whole, everything really. Lets make a list - well read, sarcastic, good with babies, tattooed, good looking, considerate, adorable, and a rockstar - in that order (shows my priorities haha). His relationship with Charlie warms my heart as a mother of a little girl. He reminded me of my husband, napping and playing and just forming that beautiful connection. *heart eyes* *swoon*

Rena is so lost and scattered - very much a first time momma. I feel so bad for her with all she deals with and I am so happy that she has Jude. I felt like she got in her own way so much. Granted, I understood why she had all her hang-ups about Jude but if she (or he) had just been honest, they would have been happier sooner.

I would recommend this book, series, and author!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book three in The Near Miss series and it is Jude and Ren's story. Jude is a famous musician and Ren is a single mom to her daughter Charlie and also runs her own record store and Jude and Ren are also best friend's. When Jude comes back home from his latest your he decides to spend time with Ren and Charlie but when he sees how much Ren is struggling to make everything work he offers to help by looking after and spending time with Charlie not knowing how much it will change his life as Jude doesn't do relationships or commitments but lines start to get blurred and things start to get more complicated with the amount of time that he spends with Ren and Charlie but as there friendship is the most important thing to them and Ren has her daughter Charlie to think of and care for it makes everything even more difficult and even though they are perfect for each other will they be able to get over there problems and get the happy ending that they deserve and become a family. I absolutely loved this book and I couldn't put it down and had to keep turning the pages to see what the outcome would be for them all. I definitely recommend you read this book and series and you will not be disappointed.

I Voluntarily Reviewed a Copy of This Book.

[Patty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Barely
Near Miss, Book 3
By: Amy Booker
Narrated by: Ryan Lee Dunlap, Addison Barnes

I have fallen in love with the Near Miss series, and this third installment is my favorite so far! Best friends to lovers, slow burn, single parent, rock band, it pushes all the right buttons and wormed it's way into my heart. Jude and Ren have been friends forever. Now a single mother with baby Charlotte and that little one has won Jude's heart. But it's not just Charlie, there is something more building between Jude and Ren. But Jude doesn't do relationships. And Ren keeps reading into everything. Will these two find their way to happiness? I love this story! The protectiveness Jude feels over the two of them, the slow burn building, the misunderstandings that are incredibly frustrating and the help of the people we have gotten to know and love from the first two stories! This is a fun, easy listen that made my hear happy!

Ryan Lee Dunlap and Addison Barnes are our storytellers and they give us all the feels! I love these two together! Dunlap falls into the part of Jude. Conflicted, loving and so adorable with Charlie, he is a character impossible not to love. Ren knows her feelings, and we feel her pain and excitement through Barnes. It's a great listen and series!

[Danee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third installment in the Near Miss series. I missed the other parts, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this last book was also great. The storyline and the build up was fantastic, a bit of a slow burn/friends to lovers story.
Ren owns a record store and is a single mother, and Jude's best friend. Jude is Bassist and a bit of a soul under his arm because everyone has found the one and he is the only one in the band that nobody has yet.

They take time to get to know each other again, and slowly that the feelings for each other and the chemistry and attraction is palpable. You are taken on the journey they are on and learning to deal with the fact that Ren has a son and that Jude is in a band with everything that comes with it, many gigs, groupies, money.
The road they walk is not an easy one, but the end result makes it worth everything they went through. This book is highly recommended!


I received a Advance Reader copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Maddy Matos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jude and Ren had been friends since forever. They went out together and always had a great time but neither one felt any romantic attraction, he’s a rockstar and is away a lot. Now Ren is a mom, Charlotte is about six months old. Jude is so good with the baby, surprising himself and Ren. I love their easy camaraderie and reading about how they’re discovering each other. Ren has an idea to help him find his soulmate and she promises to do the same for herself. This story drags a little because these two are so blind.
I loved this story, the ending is beautiful and I’m giving it five stars, highly recommend it.

[R M · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very long ending to the series

This one is not bad per se, but the misunderstandings go on endlessly. They love each other. Clearly. But Jude, international rock star playboy, can’t read his very best friend of eleven years, like, at all?
And Ren, so smart, so astute, so perfect, (1) got herself pregnant by loser Brad the Dad, and (2) knows nothing of her best friend’s thoughts or intentions after eleven years?
Very frustrating and made for a very long and tedious last book of the series.
Also - and this might be petty - but if you don’t know that “taut” is not spelled “taught”, then use the word “tight”.

[Dee Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have loved this series. The writing is captivating and heartfelt, you are part of the journey that the characters are on. Jude and Ren are so sweet and cute, their banter is witty and humorous. The unrequited love and heartbreak they both suffer through is emotional and brought tears to my eyes. However, when they finally express their feelings for each other we are given a truly beautiful, steamy HEA.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[J. Ockenhouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friends to lovers/rock star romance that's blended perfect. I enjoyed the slow burn of it. The fact that each tried to move on yet couldn't do it only proved they were meant to be.

I enjoyed the storytelling which made me feel like I was front row as they deal with fame, a child, feels each fear and how they made it work. It's their ride and while it's not easy, it's the struggles that build the foundation. I received an ARC for an honest and voluntarily review.

[DC · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bassist Jude Lockwood is feeling left out. His bandmates have "found the one", he has not. When the latest tour ends and they all return home to LA, he visits his best friend, Ren Scott at her record store. Ren is a new, single mother who gets no support from the baby's daddy. She feels overwhelmed.

Will they ever realize that "they share a brain" and fall in love with their best friend?

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Caroline Doig · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my absolute favourite genre rockstars, bands etc this is book 3 in the Near Miss series and this is Jude’s and Rena’s story. Jude and Rena have been best friends like forever but lately Rena has been having naughty dreams about Jude she puts it down to being very tired trying to run a record store and a 6 month old baby girl. There is so much more going on in this fantastic story I loved it and the characters and I highly recommend this book it’s definitely well worth the read.

[Happyscribe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a slow burn for me - your typical friends to lovers arc, but set within the insane rockstar world of fame and pressures. The love and loss and then love again story is the kind that reels in your emotions and forces you to engage your heart. I liked the story a lot.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Paula Davies · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened on audible, good narration. Jude, the tin man, finds he actually does have a heart. Another great story from Amy Booker - this one has a slow burn and I wasn’t sure I was going to like it, but it soon drew me in and hooked.

[Christina's Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Third one in this Trilogy but it was the best! Really enjoyed this one.
✔️single mom
✔️best friends to lovers
✔️rockstar

[Kirsten Pardini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ren and Jude

Friends to lovers insta-family type love story. Jude needs to accept he knows how to love and be loved and Ren needs to see what a really man is like to have in her life and around her baby. But will Rens ex husband get in the way, or will their individual fears?
Sweet and steamy finally to this band series!

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Barely is book 3 in the Near Miss series, but can be read as a standalone. Its a slow burn romance between 2 best friends, Jude & Ren. It a sweet, low angst, non typical rockstar romance that will give you all the feels.

[Coralee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing read and I loved it

[Anij · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The more time I spend with him, the harder it is to think of him as just a friend.”

Rockstar romances are my favorite genre and I love a good slow burn, but this slow burn moved at almost a glacier speed. I was starting to think these two would never figure things out!

Jude is super hot. (Duh! He’s a sexy rockstar.) Ren’s smart and I really liked her. They’ve been friends for years and are a great couple. I loved Jude with Ren’s baby, Charlie. There are some great scenes between them. He didn’t just fall in love with Ren, he fell in love with Charlie as well. The end just made me feel so good.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Maja · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Ren and Jude's relationship, therefore the first person point of view was perfect. I really liked Jude. I read this one in one sitting, I couldn't put it down.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun finale for the series! Jude and Ren were adorable together! It was a perfect single mom/friends to lovers trope.
Ren and Jude have been friends for eleven years, so what's changed now? Matt and Ryan are engaged and Jude is still single and he finally notices his friend Ren and her adorable daughter Charlotte. It's an entertaining story with the fun angst of friends who think their love is unrequited and fear ending a friendship if they are wrong. There is plenty of Charlotte in the story, she's not just included for a little then forgotten about. I liked the addition of Charlotte's dad, it was a little rocky at first, but definitely helped the story. There were times where I would have loved if they could have both just talked to each other because talking is always an important part to all relationships!
The story has swearing and a little steam, and tons of angst!
The book can be read as a standalone, but read the others first because they are great!

[Brooke H · Rating 3 out of 5]

The end of this book was amazing. Unfortunately, I skimmed the first 85% because the angst and misunderstandings were too much. The MCs both realized they were in love with the other at the very beginning, but kept misreading each other’s behaviors. Incredibly frustrating as a reader. And ironic that at the end they reference sharing a brain several times.

[Sarah Crocket-tone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Jude

[Becki · Rating 5 out of 5]

A slow burn, adorable baby, and a man written by a woman? SIGN ME UP! While I haven't read the other books in the series (yet), I was able to follow the story and become far too invested in both of them pulling their heads out of their behinds to finally see what they could have together!! This book made me want to reach in and lock them in a room until they worked it out. Will be reading the others!!

- Thank you Goodreads for my advanced copy!

[Grinning Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cat’s Stats
MMC/FMC- Jude and Ren
Genre- Rockstar Romance
Length- 44 chapters
Heat- 🌋🌋🌋 Slow Burn with lots of fun moments
Series? Y
Safety? Y
Triggers- explicit erotic content
Tropes- Adorable Moppet, Friends to Lovers, Geek Love, Reformed Man Ho-Ho-Ho, Single Parent, Slow Burn
Mewsings- I love a good friends to lovers story. I liked that she owned a record store. And he was so cute with her li’l moppet.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book 3 in Booker's Near Miss series...This series follows Indigo Kings band member Jude. This is Jude and Rio's story. I loved their story. Well written romance read - slow burn - great dynamics. Completely hooked from the very beginning til the end.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Di · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a nice and interesting love story. These two deserved the chance to find happiness and they took it. I loved every single page.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Petra Moss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous third book in the series, loved to see the characters from the previous two books play a roll in it.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[TELA666 · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars.

This was a very slow burn, which isn't usually my preferred pace but I think it works due to Jude's former playboy persona. Charlie was adorable, the scenes with Jude and her were so sweet.