Review: Strong Medicine by J.K. Hogan

Title: Strong Medicine

Author: J.K. Hogan

Publisher: Wilde City Press

Length: 289 Pages

At a Glance: I can tell you that Strong Medicine is a dark, happy and sensual story to read. And it’s a story you won’t want to miss.

Reviewed By: Kathie

Blurb: Two men who meet in a psychiatric institution couldn’t possibly find happiness together—could they?

The world seemed to be telling disgraced former child star and singer Cameron Fox that he would never be happy again. A drunken car accident gets him sentenced to a work release program at Riverbend Behavioral Health Facility.

Reclusive, traumatized writer Jonah Radley has an entire graveyard of skeletons in his closet. Jonah regularly hospitalizes himself for psychotic episodes caused by a horrific childhood trauma, his biggest secret—one he refuses to speak about in therapy.

Jonah and Cameron form a bond inside the hospital, forged in mutual pain and hope for a better life. Once they leave the hospital, they must decide if they are brave enough to explore the intricacies of living with mental illness—and find a new normal together.

Review: Book hangover: when you’ve finished a book and you suddenly return to the real world, but the real world feels incomplete or surreal because you’re still living in the world of the book. According to Urban Dictionary, this is what I had after finishing this amazing story.

J.K. Hogan’s books always do this to me. Her stories are so intense, like a roller coaster ride of emotion. When Jonah finally opens up about his trauma and consents to treatment, I am not too proud to say I cried. And when Cameron was lead up the driveway to Jonah’s cottage by Aida, Jonah’s cat, I literally had some anxious moments: Would he be rejected by Jonah? Was Jonah in any shape, emotionally, to see Cameron? When Jonah opened the door and said, “Thought you might find me,” then pause…pause…anxious reading…still not sure how Jonah was feeling. And then, bam! Jonah said to Cameron, “What…the hell took you so long?” Such a relief that they were going to be okay.

There are a lot of uncomfortable parts in Strong Medicine; the trauma that Jonah went through is not easy to read. After finishing the book, I reflected on whether Jonah’s past needed to be told. The conclusion I came to is, why would I even doubt J.K. Hogan? Of course it needed to be told! It’s why I fangirl her and her work.

I can tell you that Strong Medicine is a dark, happy and sensual story to read. And it’s a story you won’t want to miss.

You can buy Strong Medicine here:

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