Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway: A Fighting Chance by A.J. Sand

A FIGHTING CHANCE

By A.J. Sand

New Adult/Adult Romantic Suspense

Jesse Chance is a bastard.

And that’s all he heard his entire life growing up once news got out that he was the illegitimate child of womanizing ex-con, Henry Chance.

Stuck in Glory, Texas, a town too small to escape the sins of his parents, Jesse turned into exactly what everyone expected him to be: a lover of liquor and women, and so good with his fists, he became a teenage champion of the secret underground fighting rings that float around the South, while doubting the only people who ever believed he could be more, his ailing mother, and his girlfriend, Drew Hallisay.

But determined to make his mother’s dying wish come true, he enrolled in a college on the East Coast, far away from his past. Jesse Chance is reborn into a new life, and set on keeping Glory, Texas–and Henry Chance–in his rear view.

Until a visit from his father in the middle of the night changes everything.

Forced to return to Glory to prevent a tragedy, Jesse is soon back on the fighting circuit with Drew’s help and facing the history he was so desperate to escape, the part of him he would prefer to hide.

As he slips back into his old ways–Henry Chance’s ways–he finds himself torn between the guy he was and the one he’s been struggling to become. And in a world dead set on betting against you, can you ever really overcome your past… or your destiny?

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Review

4 Gripping and Gritty Stars

We’re all walking on the edge of chaos, knowing full well it won’t take much to fall over.

Holy shit. I mean HOLY SHIT! I did not see this book coming. Let me warn you now

of reading that is. Because this book is…I’m not even sure how to best describe it

INTENSE

UNAPOLOGETIC

AND GRITTY AS HELL!

Seem to cover it nicely, because DAMN what a ride!

Now if you’re at all like me, you may have take a look at that droolworthy cover and assumed what you’ll be getting here is a steamy NA story about a sexy fighter, right? Well fuck that! Because that’s not even close to what you’ll be getting here.

This book was fantastic, but I can tell you that it’s not for everyone. So if you’re uncomfortable with some intense and descriptive violence, I’ll suggest grabbing your teddy bear and cowering in the corner, because this book is not for you my friend.

Just look at what the author herself wrote about this book:

– Standalone, not even remotely part of a series (I probably won’t ever write another series).

– No cliffhanger! Wooo!

– Might be a wee bit intense for some in terms of the violence.

So excited to move away from contemporary romance and AFC is quite a way to move! 😉 It’s TOTALLY different from the others but, truthfully, I’ve never written a traditional contemporary romance.

I can’t do it. I’m evil, I guess.

It’s way gritty, it’s way grungy, and I let loose because I needed to. It won’t be an easy ride because that’s not how I operate. I decide a long time ago that if I was going to write an underground fighting book, it wasn’t going to be sugarcoated.

It’s a huge study in human nature, too, so if you like books where good is good and bad is bad, this won’t work for you. Graham Greene once said human nature isn’t black and white, it’s black and grey, and I STRONGLY believe this.

So, if you’re looking for rainbows and kittens and bunnies. They aren’t here. 😉

It’s still longity-long because, well, it’s me and that’s how I roll.

Can’t say we didn’t warn you. So let’s move on…

If you read the blurb, then you have probably about 1/18th of what this book is about. I could tell you more, but where’s the fun in that? This is something that needs to be experienced without any spoilers. But I can gloss over the edges for you, just a little, because I’m nice like that 🙂

The thing about lines? They stop being dangerous the moment you cross them; they stop mattering too. And instead of admitting that, you just set another limit, raise the stakes, draw another boundary for your sins, and find a way to justify your actions.

Jesse Chance used to be a fighter back in high school days, and a damn good one, making pretty good money in illegal fights out of the local farm his friend’s parents own. But that was before he promised his dying mother that he will make something better of himself. Before he left his small town, girlfriend, and everything of his life behind to start new. Now he’s in college, he has new friends, a new girl, and his fighting days are behind them. That is until a visit from his father flips his life upside down.

Jesse wants nothing to do with his father, it’s not like he’s been a resounding presence in his life. Being the bastard son in a small town never got him anything but grief. But in order to prevent a tragedy, Jesse agrees to help the one man he hoped never to have to see again. Forced to go back to the town he used to call home and back to his old way, Jesse knows that nothing good can come of this, but he does know that his fists will earn him the cash that he so desperately needs.

When he runs into the girl that used to own his heart and he walked away from, all the feelings come rushing back. But it’s too late now. Now Jesse is with someone else, and Drew is engaged. But can old feelings really disappear, or do they simply fester until reaching the surface?

All I’ve ever done is carve out a space for you inside me, Jesse. And I’m afraid it’s gotten so big, it’s going to eat me alive one day.”

This book takes the reader into the dark and violent world of underground fighting. There’s no rules, no safety net, and anything goes. There were moments that even I found myself cringing. Intense is an understatement.

This is not a sunshine, rainbows and butterflies book. It’s grungy, it’s gritty, and holy fuck does the author not hold back on the details. In the middle of the chaos that is the main story, we also get the love story of Drew and Jesse. I have to admit that me and my puny brain struggled a bit with the names at first. I mean, Jesse I can get used to, but when the heroine has a masculine name while the hero has a female sounding one…well…it took some getting used to.

I devoured this book from beginning to end. I had to know what happens. There were so many twists and turns I thought I’d get whiplash. It’s not light reading when the Spanish Cartel is involved. Then the twist at the end…HOLY FUCKING SHIT! I didn’t see that coming at all. I was flabbergasted. I couldn’t believe what was happening. I’m pretty sure I was sitting there with my jaw hanging open, catching flies for a good 10 minutes staring at my kindle.

The love story was steamy, and you could definitely feel the tension and sexual chemistry between the H/h. I loved that the author really made you burn for them together. There was no insta anything. Their relationship was one bumpy fucking road. So would I recommend this book? Hell yes. But be prepared to get on to one hell of a roller coaster ride. This is not a book for the faint of heart, but it’s certainly worth the risk.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to go purge some of the images from this book with some mindless smut, or else I’ll never recover. And I thank you

About the Author

A.J. Sand grew up an only child whose parents bought her many, many books to keep her busy, so it was only natural that she would start writing her own stories. She is the author of “Documentary,” “Remake” and “Recklessly.” She lives just outside of Washington, D.C.

Author social media links:

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Giveaway

$25 Amazon gift card, (1) copy of A Fighting Chance on either Kindle or Nook, and (1) Wantable gift card or one-time accessories box (U.S. Only giveaway) – 1 winner

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