The Bastard is the first book in the Filthy Trilogy by Jones and I am just beginning to get into this author’s work and I am intrigued. Now I tried reading this one just a couple of weeks ago and yeah I set it aside when I saw that it was a step sibling romance and that is not my cup of tea. But then for some reason this week I was in the mood for this one, I don’t know why but I decided to try it out again and I quickly fell in love with this story. Its not your typical step sibling romance either, so I did enjoy seeing how this author implemented this aspect within the story. The Bastard is a story of two people that once had an affair, but then Eric left and Harper was left alone. But then they are brought back together when Eric returns home to get justice against his family that wronged him, only to learn, the only woman he ever loved is now related to him when her mother married his father. Harper has her reasons for sticking with the Bennett family, but the feelings she carries for Eric are her undoing and they both end up stumbling on a plot to destroy them but there are secrets that Harper is keeping from Eric, could that be what destroys them? Man this book was a whirlwind of a read and honestly I knew after that ending I would be picking up book two….dang those cliffhangers. I actually really fell hard for these two characters. There is such angst and deep emotion and the way that this author really balanced out those elements worked for me. Their romance is fiery and intense and the emotional build up is one that will leave the reader on the edge, highly looking forward to the rest of the trilogy to see where this author takes this pair.