The Blurb
Pitching phenom Bruce "Jilly" Gillette has a hard time talking to women. His hulking presence of tattoos and muscles is what makes him an intimidating closer on the mound, yet off the field, he's painfully shy, uncomfortable in his own skin.
Desperate to revamp his loner image, the New York Kings hold a dream date contest, granting the lucky winner a night on the town with their surly reliever, doing whatever it takes to force Jilly out of his comfort zone.
Hailey Halpert enters the contest on a whim, looking for answers as to why her high school relationship with Jilly hit the skids. Now she’s a popular romance author writing under a pen name, and her reappearance in Jilly's life is no accident. It turns out that her novels are all about the sexy players on the Kings, and Jilly has no clue that he's about to become her new leading man.
My Review
Let me start out by saying that I liked this book.
I liked the love story between Jilly and Hailey, I thought it was sweet. I loved that Jilly was an introvert who enjoys genealogy. I can relate, I like stuff like that too; I never was one of the popular crowd either.
I loved loved loved the second chance element. That two people who couldn't get it together in High School were finally getting their chance to be together.
Overall, I enjoyed the book itself.
BUT there were elements of the story that had putting it down several times in frustration.
I found some of it a bit clunky. I also couldn't understand why certain issues that arose would be a problem (not giving away spoilers) and characters were getting their knickers in a twist over it.
I found some of it a bit clunky. I also couldn't understand why certain issues that arose would be a problem (not giving away spoilers) and characters were getting their knickers in a twist over it.
The 'will they/won't' was a tad overdone for me and Hailey, while sweet-natured and endearing, came across as a bit of a doormat and immature.
I feel horrible mentioning these and I hope the author doesn't hate me but it wouldn't sit right with me not to give my honest opinion.
I would recommend it though, as I said I did enjoy it and the epilogue was lovely. A really beautiful HEA.
*ARC copy received in exchange for an honest review.
Excerpt
"Wow," she giggles, tracing the ridges of my face with her finger. "That didn't take long, did it?"
I flush under her lust-filled gaze. I didn’t know that my body was going to react this way. "I can…slow it down," I stammer. "If you're not ready to go again."
"Ready?" she whispers. "I think you'd better find a permanent place for me on your schedule—all night, every night." She playfully nudges me with her hips, causing me to groan in ecstasy.
"Why did we wait so long to do this again?" I moan.
"I think you mentioned something about being a slow learner," she teases me. "But let me assure you, you're a natural."
"So I'm more than just an arm to you?" I ask, quirking an eyebrow as I start to move her up and down on top of me.
"Way more," she agrees, closing her eyes, reveling in what I'm doing to her.
"I love you, Hailey," I declare as we move together as one.
She cradles the side of my face, and I turn my head to kiss her palm, bending my legs and resting her back against my knees, eager to try a new position.
Because this is a game I'll never get tired of playing—as long as I can play it with her.
About Collette West
Collette West grew up as somewhat of a jock-nerd hybrid. Entering the world three weeks premature, her dad nearly missed her birth because he had seats behind the dugout for a sold-out, highly-anticipated match-up between two of baseball's biggest rivals. Not to be outdone, her book-loving mom taught her how to read by the time she was three. A love of the game coupled with an appreciation for the written word were instilled in Collette's impressionable brain from a young age. No wonder her characters believe in the philosophy: sports + romance = a little slice of heaven.
Splitting her time between the Pocono Mountains and Manhattan, Collette indulges her inner fangirl by going to as many games as she can from hockey to baseball and downloading every sports romance novel in existence onto her iPad. When she's not clicking away on her laptop, she enjoys walking her dog in Central Park, satisfying her caffeine craving at the Starbucks on Broadway and keeping an eye out for Mr. Right. But above all, she loves dishing with her readers. Email her at collette_west@yahoo.com.
She is the author of NIGHT GAMES and GAME CHANGER.
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