We first met Jan Weston in Sárka-Jonae Miller ‘s  Between Boyfriends . A twenty-one-year old blonde who has rich parents and loves to bear a carefree attitude toward life. It was a tad difficult to like this self-centered,pampered,crazy-about-boys brat who had quite a snobbish attitude . But the change comes slowly and we get to see a better Jan in the sequel Between The Sheets . Now in the last book of the trilogy , Between Heartbreak and Happiness , life comes full circle as Jan gradually transforms herself to a woman  ready to carry on responsibilities and honour commitment.

Sárka-Jonae Miller ‘s Between Heartbreak and Happiness completes the story , the story of Jan Weston . Jan flies to Australia to meet her grandfather Bradley Thomas Weston II and comes almost to her wit’s end after discovering that her grandpa is no more a rich, pretentious, class-conscious person of whom she has heard from her parents. Rather he likes to call himself ‘Brady ‘ and is just a loving old grandfather any girl would love to have . Jan quite enjoys her stay in Australia and we , the readers , almost experience  a virtual tour of Sydney along with her . From Bodhi beach to local Night Clubs . Jan learns about her family and the cloud of misunderstanding that hung between her parents and grandparents finally begins to dissipate.

Meanwhile , Pan comes to LA to attend a workshop and conference on Thai massaging and this time both of them feel the spark of attraction that exists between them.  ( For those who do not know Pan , he was the man whom Jan met in Bangkok and immediately got attracted in  Between the Sheets ) . Pan confesses that it’s not possible for him to live without Jan and both of them begin to think seriously about their relationship. But as far as commitment is concerned , Jan’s previous experiences have made her sceptical and she finds it hard this time to have faith in Pan and , of course ,  her luck . Moreover , there are disadvantages of maintaining a long-distance relationship. As the situation demands Jan gets seriously serious to open her own Spa business so that she could employ Pan there thus furthering their relationship.

The book is not a sensational chic-lit stuff . It has rather a motivational value and shows the reader that there is always a way to reach the desired goal . The road may be rough and one has to work hard to cover the distance but with determination and confidence you’ll surely be able to complete the journey. Learning is a ceaseless process of life and one must learn from her/his past experiences . Her friend Lisa tells her the true meaning of commitment that  ” a commitment is the promise you make so that you don’t get caught up in your temporary emotions. It didn’t
matter how you felt in one moment, or that day, or that week, or even that month. That person was your partner for better or worse, till death
do you part. That’s commitment.”

I like the book mostly for the reason that it reveals some true colours of life and the ways to deal with them . Moreover , detailed description of both the City Of Angels is a treat by itself . The occasional hints of humour act as spices . Especially when Brady tells Jan not to wear her thongs while going to the night club , a bewildered Jan  (as well as me ) immediately google the word only to find that it’s an Aussie colloquial for flip-flops !!

The writing style of Sárka-Jonae Miller is always simple and she avoids using bombastic words . The plot is well woven but those who have read the previous books of the sequel , can easily guess the end .

However , for new readers who have no idea about Jan or Pan and their friends and family , the book may look a bit dragging . I don’t think new readers will find this as interesting as Between Boyfriends or Between The Sheets . Overall a good read and more so if you have an affinity for detailed description .

As the author says at the end ” this isn’t the end for Jan, Alex, Becki, and Lisa. Their stories continue...”  , so waiting eagerly for more from her .

From my side it’s 3.75 /5

About The Author

Sárka-Jonae is a novelist, publicist, and journalist, among other “ists” there aren’t room for. Her novel writing career began with Between Boyfriends, an edgy chick-lit book for women who’ve been “Between Boyfriends”, which is much cooler than being single.

Sárka-Jonae is a graduate of Syracuse University. Before writing full-time, she was a personal trainer and massage therapist, helping people tone up, slim down, and chill out. In her free time, SJ loves to dance in flash mobs, in music videos, on speakers, or at home in her underwear. She practices kung fu and yoga, was briefly a Buddhist nun, and travels extensively for “research”. She’s a huge animal lover and has been vegan since 1999. She’s committed to respectfully unveiling the truth about the horrific way factory farms abuse animals. SJ lives in San Diego with two cats and two dogs.

Visit her Website

Grab a copy
Amazon  | Barnes & Noble