REVIEW: Damaged Goods by L.J. Shen

Damaged Goods by L.J. Shen: The fall from grace is never easy, especially when you don’t even realize that you are headed down that road this could not be more true than for Bailey Followhill. Juilliard was supposed to be the start of Bailey’s amazing ballet story but instead it turned out to be the start of her entire life unraveling right in front of her eyes.

What started out as a simple pick me up to help her power through the pain of a few nagging injuries soon becomes a pill popping crutch that Bailey cant do without, so much so that she puts her own life in danger. With her reputation trashed, her parents worried and her ever present drug craving looming, Bailey is desperate to convince herself and everyone else that she is not a junkie. Maybe she can convince herself of this but the one person she cant hide from is Lev Cole. Ever since Bailey left, Lev has been coasting, not truly living for himself but that is about to change, gone is the Lev that puts everyone else’s happiness before his own, it is time he finally chooses himself. And for his true happiness he needs to insure that Bailey gets the help that she needs, even if it means that he needs to break her heart and his to do it!

“You’re it, Bails. My beginning, my middle, and my end.”

This book wrecked me in the best freaking way possible! I have been loyally following the All Saints High series and I can tell you that these books get more and more heart breaking as they go on. It was impossible not to feel the raw emotion and pain that was laced through Damaged Goods, this book deals with a lot in a short space of time while walking the fine line of balancing real life relatable issues with witty banter. Shen had already prepared us to an extent that Bailey and Lev would truly break our hearts but gosh I was not prepared for all the emotion that came with reading this book.

“Damaged goods are still goods. Its the dents that make them special. That make them them. Survivors. Moulded by their experiences. Be proud of your scars, Dove.”

I don’t think Bailey will ever be my favourite character but I did understand her and come to love her. She was truly a beautiful person that went out of her way to make the people she loves happy. This only made my heart break for her when we get to see how much of pressure she is under and that she truly loses herself trying keep up this perfect image. Her journey to recovery was raw, painful and very real. Shen has down an incredible job in capturing this struggles faced by addicts. As much as my heart hurt for Bails, it was Lev that really made my heart bleed. Gosh did this guy have it rough, I already knew that his story would be hard after losing his mother, I mean Rosie was a legend in her own right. But gosh I did not expect his story to be this painful, he willingly put his own happiness on the back burner so that his father could have some happiness again. This just broke my heart, the Cole men really know how to pull on the heart strings. I truly loved getting to see who Lev was, he was really selfless and cared for the people around him. I really enjoyed getting to see him right his wrongs but also prove his love and devotion to Bailey.

“I’m serious. I would die before willingly watch you suffer.”

Bailey and Lev are the true embodiment of a true love story, these two weather many a storm, only to come out stronger together. Their journey has never been sunshine and roses but goes was it worth all the heart break and pain at the end. We see them tearing each other down but also truly helping to build each other up to the best versions of themselves. Did they have a bit of an unhealthy co-dependance, definitely but did it work in their favour, hell yeah. I loved that even when they were both battling their own internal demons they still showed up for each other when it mattered. Yes, they had incredible chemistry and the sexual attraction was definitely present but there was more to their story than this and that truly made this book stand out from the others in there series.

The supporting characters in this book were interesting, for one I loved seeing Knight again, as well as Daria. Shen did a brilliant job in crafting Thalia, gosh I just hated her guts! Thalia made the perfect villain while helping to build the angst between Levi and Bails. Now for the Dean, Rosie, Dixie love triangle, truly I’m always going to be team Rosie but at the same time I want Dean to be happy as well. Did I love what Shen did with the Dixie and Dean situation, not really but I do like that they both get this second chance of sorts. I will say that I did warm up to Dixie a bit more in this book, especially for the way she supports Lev.

Damaged Goods was the perfect way to wrap up a beautiful series, it was so much more than a mere friends to lovers to enemies to lovers, forced proximity romance. This book was just heart breaking perfection. I highly recommend reading this book!!

Book Info:

Publication: January 23, 2024 | Bloom Books | All Saints High #4

Underneath the goody two-shoes persona is damaged goods…but can the bad boy across the street save her?

Bailey Followhill is the perfect daughter. Sweet. Charitable. Pretty. Control freak. Not a hair out of place, not an inch out of line, she is everything her troublemaking sister Daria isn’t. But when her A game turns out to be a lukewarm C- at Juilliard, Bailey’s picture-ready life starts fraying faster than the worn satin ribbons of her pointe shoes. She’s becoming a piece of gossip. The Troubled Child. A drug abuser. No longer the girl her best friend once knew.

Lev Cole is so golden, he’s got the Midas Touch. Prized quarterback. Football captain. Hottest guy in SoCal. A textbook cliché. But with a girlfriend he doesn’t love and a career path he doesn’t value, Lev is coasting.
The only two things he cares about, Bailey and becoming a pilot, are out of reach.

But Lev is done being satisfied with the life others have chosen for him. He wants to pick his own cards. To demolish the seamless kingdom of lies his family stitched together on the ruins his mother left behind.

The question is, can he save his best friend and his dream before too much damage is done?