Review: The Angels' Share by J.R. Ward

Title: The Angels' Share
Author: J.R. Ward 
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: NAL
Publish Date: July 26, 2016
Source: Publisher

What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "In Charlemont, Kentucky, the Bradford family is the crème de la crème of high society—just like their exclusive brand of bourbon. And their complicated lives and vast estate are run by a discrete staff who inevitably become embroiled in their affairs. This is especially true now, when the apparent suicide of the family patriarch is starting to look more and more like murder…

No one is above suspicion—especially the eldest Bradford son, Edward. The bad blood between him and his father is known far and wide, and he is aware that he could be named a suspect. As the investigation into the death intensifies, he keeps himself busy at the bottom of a bottle—as well as with his former horse trainer’s daughter. Meanwhile, the family’s financial future lies in the perfectly manicured hands of a business rival, a woman who wants Edward all to herself.

Everything has consequences; everybody has secrets. And few can be trusted. Then, at the very brink of the family’s demise, someone thought lost to them forever returns to the fold. Maxwell Bradford has come home. But is he a savior...or the worst of all the sinners?"

My Two Cents:

"The Angel's Share" is the second book in The Bourbon Kings series. This story continues the story of the Bradford family, storied manufacturers of bourbon in Kentucky. When the book opens, the family's patriarch is dead. What initially looks like a suicide could be hiding a plot more sinister. The family finances and the family itself is in shambles. It may fall on Lane, son of the empire, to pick up the pieces.

It is definitely helpful to read the first book in this series first to get background on the characters but this book was way more exciting for me. It's during the toughest times that you get to see people's, even fictional people's true colors. This book definitely shows that. The Bradford fairy tale is totally unraveled in this book and I really enjoyed getting to know the characters through the tough times. Lane especially began to seem more real to me as his mettle is tested in a bunch of different ways throughout the book.

There are a lot more twists and turns in this book than the first one. The first one seemed like a very standard family drama but this story had more originality, which I appreciated. I wish that somehow more of the action from this book had made it into the first book. This was a good follow-up!