Review: Sending Jack off To Jesus by Sara York
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 28, 2014
In 'Sending Jack Off to Jesus' by Sara York, the story picks up where the first book ended with Jack and Andrew still in the almost unbearable position of having to hide their love in order to keep each other safe. Jack and Andrew are determined to stay together no matter what anyone else thinks. In their hearts, they know that a love like theirs can't be wrong.  The sin in this situation is not what the boys are doing, but with their parents who are failing miserably in their role as caregivers. Raising a child is not just providing them with material things, but, also, with love and compassion. If anyone is going to be condemned for their sins, it will be the parents.When Jack's father finds out he's gay, he beats him severely. His bruises and cuts raise the eyebrows of people around him, but Jack tells no one the true story, nor will he give up Andrew. Jack is too afraid of what his father, and Andrew's parents, will do if they find out. When physical punishment and verbal abuse don’t work, Nathaniel takes even more drastic measures by enrolling Jack in a rehabilitation camp in order to force him to be straight. When Jack's father tells him where he's going, he's scared, but agrees to go since his father is blackmailing him with harming his little brother, Billy, if he doesn't. As bad as he thinks the camp might be, it's even worse. When Jack's mother finally realizes how much danger he's in, she goes to get him, but by that time, a lot of damage has been done. Jack will never be the same, no longer the innocent young man he was before. To make matters worse, no one knows where Andrew and his family have gone. Jack knows that Andrew would not just disappear and sets out to find him, with little luck.It breaks Andrew's heart to have to leave his foster home and be forced to go back to his parents’ house, but things go better than expected, that is, until he comes home early one morning from a tryst with Jack. The next thing he's aware of is waking up in a hospital after being severely injured and left for dead. Andrew won't tell anyone at the hospital who he really is because he's afraid they will contact his parents. Andrew runs away as soon as he can and begins an exceedingly dark time in his life. Trying to stay alive, Andrew does things which he deeply regrets and it eats away at him.  He doesn't think anyone cares about him and is afraid to trust a soul. Thinking Jack is lost to him and that he'd never want him back now, he contemplates suicide. Andrew's self-esteem, which wasn't great to begin with, is at an all-time low. Andrew is confused, and barely functioning, but before he dies, he wants closure and heads back to the only place he can get it—the town of Sweet.This installment of the series is the hardest to read so far. I'm emotionally invested in Jack and Andrew and want them to succeed. Love like that deserves to be rewarded, not punished. It breaks my heart to know that, even though this is a fabrication, there are young people all over our country who are in similar situations. As a mother, I can't fathom it. Those of you who are fans of the series already, have to read this, but first, brace yourself because it will invoke a great deal of emotion, positive and negative. Those of you who haven't read the series are missing a painful, but important lesson in unconditional love and lack of it. I recommend this story to everyone who wants to be aware of the consequences when uncaring parents value other people's opinions over their children's happiness and who stubbornly cling to narrow-mindedness even though it can lead to disastrous consequences. Thanks, Sara, for continuing Jack and Andrew's story.Originally published at Rainbow Book Reviews.