His father cannot even know that Alex knows Chris and Alex’s life is one of abuse and survival. He sees Chris with his boyfriend and naturally being the center of attention and it equally makes him long for more and want to hide. Alex meets Chris and it only confirms all that he is missing out on in life.

Invisible Ink is book three in the Paint series and it was confirmed that it would standalone and the beginning of the book does. After the beginning of the story, however, the book never went anywhere for me. Alex tried to make himself invisible, but had no release and turned to cutting and then to cocaine. His mother turned to alcohol as the result of a tragedy and never resurfaced and showed Alex no care or comfort. His life is devastating as he has suffered years of physical abuse from his father. The beginning of this book drew me in as Alex is introduced. Nate has no intention of crossing the doctor/patient line, but Alex might be worth making big changes for.

He does know that he wants to stay with Nate, but thinks that Nate sees him only as a patient. But, Alex is scared and closed off and has no idea what to do next. Nate is a doctor and a paramedic who specializes in drug counseling and when he brings Alex back to life, their story begins. Nate Cooper couldn’t save his brother, so he is going to save the immediate world. Alex is suddenly in the spotlight as he’s Chris’ friend, but Alex is uncomfortable with all eyes on him and one line of cocaine turns into an addiction he can’t control. Chris is always the center of attention and the first person to ever see Alex, but their friendship barely has chance to grow when Chris is tragically injured.

Alex feels invisible most of the time and then he meets Chris. His father is abusive, his mother is an alcoholic, and Alec wears hoodies and long sleeves to hide himself and the bruises inflicted by his father and the scars that are self made. Alex Fletcher may be eighteen, but his life is still not his own.

Invisible Ink by Emma Jaye