On Davis Row by N.R. Walker

 by N.R. Walker

4.5 stars 

Nearing the end of a suspended jail sentence should unlock a brighter future for CJ Davis, only the chip on his shoulder is as hard to shift as his bad reputation. Born into a family of career criminals who live down Davis Road, an address the cops have dubbed Davis Row, his name alone is like a rap sheet that makes optimism impossible.

Brand-new parole officer Noah Huxley is determined to see the good in men like CJ. After all, he knows firsthand that bad things can happen to good people. His colleagues mock his doe-eyed optimism, but Noah soon sees CJ’s bad attitude and bravado are weapons he uses to keep people at a distance.

Both men know one simple mistake can change a life forever. At first glance, they might seem to be polar opposites. Yet underneath, they're not that different at all.

Another knock-it-out-of-the-park novel from N.R. Walker.  It is a different sort of book, slower-paced than N.R. Walker other books and deals with a heart-breaking story of trying find value in yourself when no-one else see it.  Yes, this is a love story, but it is heart-breaking, we laughed, we cried, we stopped reading because our heart was breaking. It is a story of love of second chances and so much more.

What did we love?

- Dual POV: So many dual POV stories struggle with the different voices, but On Davis row is a perfect example of never confused voices.  We loved Noah’s optimism, his belief that everyone sometimes just needs a hand up.  And even through his own personal tragedies he still has so much hope and drive.  CJ’s voice is broken; he doesn’t believe much in himself and thinks that everyone is there to take from him.  The balance between Noah’s bright eyed optimism and CJ’s negativity is brilliant.  Don’t know if we would be able to survive a whole book from either of their POV, but moving back and forth gives balance.

- Slow burn:  We love slow burn romance, and On Davis Row is wonderfully unhurried.  Not to be misconstrued with the chemistry between CJ and Noah, because that is palpable.  But, the story takes it’s time, there is no rush to get them into bed, there is no rush to the happy ending.  There is significant issues that need to be worked through to get to all those things, and they make Noah and CJ’s journey to love so much sweeter.

- The Characters:  We love these men.  We love that CJ as hard and tough as he wants to appear is taking care of an elderly sick relative.  We love the Noah is determined to help, to support and to be anything CJ needs, how he could see through all the walls and labels and see the real CJ. We loved falling in love with them through each other’s eyes. 

- Epilogue:  A beautiful beautiful epilogue – thank you.

N.R. Walker is one of our favourite authors and On Davis Row is a wonderfully book full of so many emotions.  On Davis Row is a character driven story that sucked us in and kept us hoping for that happy ending.  A great read!