Made in Jersey

About the Made in Jersey series

Made in Jersey is a five-book series set in the fictional working-class town of Hook, New Jersey, following a tight circle of friends and family -- centered on the Purcell siblings -- as each finds their way back to, or into, a hometown romance. It opens with Crashed Out, in which factory worker Jasmine Taveras reunites with Sarge Purcell, the musician who left Hook (and her) behind four years earlier for a shot at a music career, now returned and still writing songs about her. Later books turn to Sarge's sister River, a single mother working two jobs, and other members of the same Hook friend group.

Published between 2015 and 2016, the series carries Bailey's early-career blend of blunt banter and real working-class stakes -- money troubles, small-town judgment, people who left and had to decide whether to come back. Readers who like their small-town romance grounded in genuine economic and family pressure, rather than a glossy family-business setup, will find that here.

How to read this series

Publication order, starting with Crashed Out. Each book follows a different member of the same Hook, New Jersey friend and family circle -- beginning with the Purcell siblings -- so you can start anywhere, but reading in order lets you watch the wider group get paired off one by one across the five books.