Contemporary Romance Review: The Knockout Rule by Kelly Siskind

The Knockout Rule (Showmen #4) by Kelly Siskind

Published: February 24th, 2021

Publisher: CD Books

Genre: Contemporary romance

Tropes: Forced proximity, friends to lovers, sports romance, opposites attract

Heat level: 🔥🔥🔥

# of pages: 340

Acquired this book: From the author in exchange for honest consideration

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Growing up with an adoring father for a boxing legend isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. It looks more like hospital visits, bloody noses, and cracked ribs.

Isla Slade now works as a physiotherapist, helping athletes heal their bodies. Except for boxers. She has no interest in reliving the stress of her teen years. Dating someone in the boxing world? She’d rather snort wasabi powder.

Until she meets Preston Church.

Preston manages heavyweight boxing darling Brick Kramarov. A brute who’s built tougher than his name, with a cocky attitude to boot. She wants nothing to do with either man, but her father begs her to help them prepare for a huge Vegas fight.

She doesn’t expect Preston to recite romantic poems and slowly break her resolve. His fascinating mind gets under her skin, even if his star athlete reminds her how much she hates boxing.

Too bad it’s Brick coaching Preston how to woo Isla, falling for her from the sidelines. Once she finds out, she’ll have to decide if she can risk loving another man who puts it all on the line for the knockout.

Kelly Siskind’s Showmen standalone series have quickly become favourites of mine. They feature unique characters, lots of heart and humour, and swoony romances. The Knockout Rule was quite different from the other three books - it was slower paced, more intense, and didn’t feature the quirkiness I’ve come to expect from Kelly’s characters - but it was a beautiful story about life, family, and love, and I know Isla and Eric will stick with me right along with all the other characters from this series.

Isla and Eric are such passionate characters who did things with their whole hearts. Their relationship started out with each of them assuming certain personas and making assumptions about each other. I loved that Eric was this big brute of a guy whose boxing persona was all brawn and no brains, but he was incredibly intelligent, sensitive, thoughtful, and loved his family more than anything. Everything he did was for them, and that made me love him so much. Isla was strong and resilient because she’d had to be; with a professional boxer for a father and a mother who found it too easy to walk away, she’d had to learn to take care of herself and do what was right for her. That meant not allowing boxers into her life because she knew how damaging the sport was and she refused to let herself get close to anyone who was willing to do that to themselves. And then Eric came along…their chemistry was undeniable (and so hot!), and I loved the connection and friendship they formed before they took things further.

There was just so much to love about this book. The characters were so deep and real, and we got to know them slowly and thoroughly. I knew next to nothing about professional boxing, so I found that interesting, along with the physiotherapy aspect from Isla’s job. The Vegas setting was fun, and I absolutely loved Eric’s dog, Whit. He had so much personality and by the end, I was as in love with him as I was with Eric and Isla. I also really appreciated the mental health rep; as someone with anxiety, I thought it was handled compassionately and realistically, and added even more depth to Isla’s character that made me connect to her on a deep level.

If you want to take a deep dive into a slow-burn romance with a ton of heart, The Knockout Rule is perfect for you. These characters are sure to leave an imprint on your heart.

Have you read The Knockout Rule or any of the other Showmen books? Do you enjoy sports romances? Have a favourite?

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The Younger Man by Karina Halle: Emotional, Sensual, and Unforgettable

The Younger Man by Karina Halle
Published: December 11th, 2019
Publisher: Self-published
Genre: Contemporary romance
Tropes: Forbidden romance, age-gap romance, sports romance 
Heat level: Smokin' hot!
# of pages: 500
My rating: 5 stars
Acquired this book: Through the author's publicity team in exchange for honest consideration. All thoughts are my own
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Starting over was her only option.

Forty years old and still reeling from a public and painful divorce, Thalia Blackwood is looking for a fresh start, somewhere far away from her upside down life. When she’s offered a new job as the sports therapist for a football (soccer) team, she jumps at the chance. This is just what she needs to leave the heartbreak and shame of Manchester behind, trading it in for the warmth and hopeful vibrancy of Madrid.

He was her only desire.

Twenty-three-year-old Alejo Albarado is rising up the ranks in his career. As the charming forward for the Real Madrid team, Alejo’s life revolves around women, parties, and being a tabloid darling, that is until the new sports therapist joins the team.

Their passion could not be ignored.

What starts out as a strictly professional relationship between Thalia and the young Spanish player, slowly evolves into something more. Much more.

Their relationship was forbidden.

But their combustible chemistry and simmering sexual tension can only go so far—should Thalia give into Alejo’s advances, she’s at risk of not only losing her job, but succumbing to a much younger man will drag her through the spotlight again.

Alejo might be worth that risk.

Unless he breaks her heart in the process.

One of my favourite books of 2019 was Karina Halle’s My Life in Shambles, so I was thrilled when I managed to score an ARC of The Younger Man. It was My Life in Shambles that made me truly appreciate Halle’s ability to squeeze your heart to the point of breaking it, and then put it back together again. After seeing some of the things she was saying about The Younger Man on Instagram, I had a feeling I was in for another emotional rollercoaster, and whoo boy, was I right. The Younger Man was full of passion, romance, angst, sensuality, and so much more.

I’ve never read an age-gap romance, so I wasn’t really sure what to expect. I appreciated that the stereotypes and double standards were addressed head-on - why is it okay for men to date younger women, but it’s ‘gross’ or ‘inappropriate’ or whatever other bs for an older woman to date a younger man? Why is a woman immediately labelled - and dismissed as - a ‘cougar’? I also appreciated that Alejo acted his age; he was impulsive and often driven by his emotions. When I was his age, I was in a relationship with someone who was thirteen years older, and I made a lot of mistakes and was insecure because I didn’t know any better, didn’t have the experience in life or love that someone who was over a decade older had. It all felt very real and relatable.

It was easy to get invested in these characters and their story. Both Thalia and Alejo had issues from the past that haunted them and affected how they dealt with things in the present. My heart ached for both of them...and it also raced because Halle sure knows how to write hotter-than-hell sexytimes! The forbidden aspect was incredibly sexy, and then throw in the fact that as a young, super-fit football player, Alejo had more stamina than the Energizer Bunny, and it made for a lot of really steamy scenes. I loved watching Thalia and Alejo get to know each other, resist their feelings, and fall deeper and deeper for each other. I rooted for them from beginning to end and basically spent the last hour of the book tearing up or outright crying. These two overcame so much - separately and together - and they earned their happily ever after.

Two more things I want to note: sports romances aren’t typically my thing, but this book actually made me want to watch football (and made me want to visit Spain!). I felt like I was there while the guys were training and during their games - I was part of the game, feeling the excitement and the tension and the thrill of it all. The second thing is Thalia’s struggles with mental health. She talks honestly from the beginning about her depression, anxiety, and panic attacks, the fact she’s sought professional help and is on medication. As someone who has struggled with depression and anxiety for most of my life, I’m always grateful to see it on page, talked about openly and honestly.

There are now officially two of Karina Halle’s books on my Favourite Books of 2019 list: My Life in Shambles and The Younger Man. Thalia and Alejo truly came to life for me and felt like real people. I was completely immersed in their world. This book made me laugh and cry and feel ALL THE FEELS. I know it's one I'll be recommending often.

Have you read The Younger Man? Do you have a favourite sports romance? Or forbidden romance? Or age-gap romance?

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Review: Right of First Refusal by Dahlia Adler

Right of First Refusal by Dahlia Adler
Series: Radleigh University #2
Published: March 15th, 2016
Publisher: Self-published
340 pages (eARC)               
Genre: Contemporary New Adult
Acquired this book: From the author in exchange for honest consideration
Warning: May contain spoilers
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{My review of Behind the Scenes || My review of Under the Lights || My review of Last Will and Testament}

On the lacrosse field, Cait Johannssen gets what she wants. Off the field is another story. Because what she wants is the school's hot new basketball student-coach, Lawrence Mason, who also happens to be the guy who broke her heart in sports camp two years earlier.

But it's Cait's new roommate who's got him.

Cait and Mase agree it's best to keep their past a secret, but she doesn't expect him to completely ignore their history...or how much it'll hurt when he does. So when a friend on the basketball team asks her to pose as his girlfriend for a night, Cait can't turn down the opportunity for distraction. (Okay, and a little spite.) But what starts as an evening of fun turns into a fake relationship with more lies than the usually drama-free Cait can handle, and it's only keeping her from the one truth that's nagged at her for years: Why did Mase cut her out of his life to begin with?

And is it really too late to get him back?
 

Dahlia Adler is on my short list of auto-buy/read authors. I’ve read all of her books so far, with the first book in the Radleigh University series, Last Will and Testament, being my favourite (Under the Lights comes in a close second, in case anyone’s interested). I was excited to carry on with the series and read Right of First Refusal, Cait's story. I have to be honest, I don’t remember much about Cait from LWaT, but I do know I’ll read anything Dahlia writes, and I knew from the start this book would fulfill the things I’ve come to expect from Adler’s books: strong friendships, sexiness, great representation of diversity, plus hard truths and plenty of honesty. Not to mention some of my favourite tropes: fake romance (which, in this case, had a nice added twist to it), second chance romance, and an element of forbidden romance.

It’s always so strange to me how much I enjoy sports romances. I was never a sporty girl, but for some reason I enjoy reading about them. I know absolutely nothing about lacrosse, Cait’s sport, so it was interesting to learn about, but most of all I loved Cait’s passion for the sport, her devotion to her team, and the comradery she felt with her teammates. There were times when I wasn’t sure how things would turn out, but toward the end I was cheering for Cait for standing up for herself and making decisions that were right for her. It took me a long time to realize that doing what’s right for you isn’t necessarily selfish - sometimes those things need to be done for your own peace of mind or for your future or for reasons that nobody else understands but that makes sense to you, and that’s all that matters. This message was probably my favourite part of the book, because it’s something real and honest and that not everyone will understand, but for those who do understand, I think it’ll really hit home.

I enjoyed the variation in the plot. Cait’s lacrosse, school, friends, family issues. I was so sad for her when it came to the situation with her dad. I think that’s something most people can sympathize with, even if they’ve never gone through the same thing. This was another case where I was proud of her for doing what was right for herself, and for having the strength and courage to stand up for herself after thinking hard about it and figuring things out.

As for the romance, I really liked Mase, and I liked Mase and Cait together. I enjoyed learning about how they met and fell for each other, but at times I felt like we saw more of them through Cait’s memories than actual interactions between them in present day, and I would have liked to see them together more. I also got a bit tired of how much Cait thought about Mase and how everything always came back to him. Even when she wasn’t thinking about him, she was thinking about him. I wouldn’t say the story dragged, but Cait’s inner angst slowed down the pace for me at times and made me start skimming a bit. Ultimately, I thought they worked well together and I appreciated that they had realistic obstacles to overcome before they got together. Plus, as always, Adler adds in sexytimes that leave you in need of a cold shower!

Right of First Refusal encompasses so much of what I love about New Adult. It reflects what a confusing, stressful, tiring, exciting, hopeful, frustrating time it is, and it does so with a main character who is strong, passionate, flawed, not afraid to screw up, and equally unafraid to pick herself back up again and carry on. I loved that we got to see so much of Lizzie and Connor, and I can’t wait for Frankie’s book, Out on Good Behavior.

Have you read Right of First Refusal? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Do you enjoy sports romances?

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Unwrapping Her Perfect Match by Kat Latham

Unwrapping Her Perfect Match by Kat Latham
Series: London Legends #3.5
Published: November 11th, 2014
Publisher: Self-published
152 pages (ebook)
Genre: Contemporary romance
Acquired this book: Kindle freebie
Warning: May contain spoilers
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’Twas a week before Christmas, and at the auction house…

At six foot one, Gwen Chambers has felt like a giant her whole life. She’s a calm, capable nurse saving lives in a busy London hospital, but healthy men give her heart palpitations. When larger-than-life rugby player “Little” John Sheldon convinces her to bid on him in his team’s fundraising auction, she discovers how pleasurable heart palpitations can be.

A rugby player was stirring, with desire no one could douse…

John has wanted Gwen since he first saw her, but when he’s injured in a match just before Christmas he suddenly needs her too. Not only can the sexy nurse help him recover, but she might be able to help him look after his daughter—a shy ten-year-old who speaks only French.

But will it be a Happy Christmas for all, and for all a good night?

From decorating the Christmas tree to ice skating at the Tower of London, Gwen helps father and daughter open up and bond with each other—and she bonds right along with them. But when John’s agent calls with a life-changing offer, Gwen has to decide how far she’s willing to go for her perfect match. Will their first Noël also be their last?

Unwrapping Her Perfect Match was exactly what I needed after reading several slow, draggy books that made me feel like I was heading into a reading slump. This novella was funny, sweet, sexy, and heartwarming. I haven’t read any of the other books in the London Legends series, but a) I didn’t feel lost reading this in-between novella, and b) I’ll definitely be going back and reading the first book in the series!

Gwen had trouble trusting people. Between her size (6'1") and things that happened in her past, her default was to assume she’d be the butt of people’s jokes. I know what it’s like to worry people will make fun of you based on your physical appearance, so I connected easily with Gwen. She was smart, funny, and had a huge heart. She wanted to be useful to prove her worth, because she thought that was the only reason people would want her around, but John made her feel all the things she’d always longed to feel. It wasn’t always easy, though. As sweet as John was, he could be clueless at times, but I loved that because it felt realistic. He and Gwen had misunderstandings and issues, but they were so good for each other, it was easy to root for them from beginning to end.

Besides being hilarious and super sexy, Unwrapping Her Perfect Match was also incredibly sweet. Watching John and Gwen with John’s daughter Agnes pulled at my heart strings. I even teared up a few times. This story had everything - romance, family, real-life issues, humour, steamy sexytimes. For a novella, it sure packed in a lot, and I enjoyed every moment of it.

Perfect for any time of year, but especially around the holidays, Unwrapping Her Perfect Match was the perfect match for me (sorry, I had to)!

Have you read Unwrapping Her Perfect Match? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Have you read any of the other London Legends books? What are some of your favourite Christmas stories? Let's talk here or on Twitter!

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Review: Losing at Love by Jennifer Iacopelli

Losing at Love by Jennifer Iacopelli

Series: Outer Banks Tennis Academy #2

Published: February 24th, 2015

Publisher: Coliloquy

206 pages (eARC)

Genre: Contemporary NA

Acquired this book: From the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Warning: May contain spoilers

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Read my review of Game. Set. Match.

Grass courts, tennis whites and the fiercest competition in the world. Wimbledon. After two crazy weeks in Paris, the girls of the Outer Banks Tennis Academy are headed to London with just one thing on their minds: winning.

Indiana Gaffney is fresh off a surprise win at the French Open junior tournament. Sponsors are clamoring for her attention, but what she wants more than anything—aside from a wild card to Wimbledon—is to be with Jack Harrison, but international fame and a secret relationship rarely mix well.

When Penny Harrison dreamed of playing at Wimbledon she never imagined agonizing pain shooting through her ankle with every step. With just a month until the tournament and the whole world expecting her to win, she’s determined to play, with or without the support of her coach or the love of her life, Alex Russell.

For the first time ever, no one expects anything from Jasmine Randazzo. After a crushing first-round defeat in the French Open juniors, the tennis world has given up on her, but worse than that, so have her parents, her best friend Teddy and maybe even her coach. With everyone writing her off, can she find it within herself to go after her dreams?

 

I read and loved Game. Set. Match. two years ago and have been waiting (im)patiently ever since for Losing at Love. In my review of the first book, I said that I went into it not expecting to love it. I have no interest in tennis, plus I often find it hard to keep multiple POVs straight, especially when a lot is going on. I was pleasantly surprised, and ended up loving not only the tennis stuff, but also the three main characters, Indy, Penny, and Jasmine. Iacopelli succeeded in capturing my attention from the very beginning, and she did that again in Losing at Love.

It was so great reconnecting with these characters. It felt like meeting up with old friends, and I was eager to see what they were up to. I love that Indy, Penny, and Jasmine have stuff in common beyond tennis - they’re all strong, independent, smart girls - but they also have their own distinct personalities, interests, and goals. Throughout the book, the boundaries of their friendships (and other relationships) were tested, and it was nice to see them go through real life stuff even though their lives are far from most peoples’ idea of normal. I also appreciated that the relationship stuff wasn't always easy. I love the boys in this book as much as I love the girls. There were some steamy, sexy moments that were great, and they were mixed in nicely with the emotional stuff and some cute, funny moments.

I’d love to see this series as a TV series. I can picture it clearly, and I think it would make a great teen drama. It has all the elements of a hit TV show - friendships, romance, humour, sexytimes, competitive characters, action. It’s not often that I can picture a book translated to the TV or movie screen, but I’d watch a TV show about the OBX girls in a heartbeat.

I’m completely hooked on this series. I didn’t want the story to end, because I want to know what will happen next for Indy, Penny, Jasmine, and their sexy love interests. I just hope we don’t have to wait another two years for the next book! ;-)

 

    

Have you read Losing at Love or Game. Set. Match? What did you think? If you haven't read them, do you plan to? Do you like books about sports? Let's talk here or on Twitter!

 

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Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: GAME. SET. MATCH. by Jennifer Iacopelli

 

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GAME. SET. MATCH. by Jennifer Iacopelli

Series: Outerbanks Tennis Academy, Book #1

Published: May 1st, 2013

Publisher: Coliloquy

193 pages (eARC)

Genre: Contemporary New Adult/Sports

Acquired this book: From the author in exchange for an honest review

Warning: May contain spoilers

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Nestled along the North Carolina coast, the Outer Banks Tennis Academy is the world's most elite training facility. In this pressure-cooker environment, futures are forged in blood and sweat, and dreams are shattered in an instant.

Penny Harrison, a rising female star, is determined to win the French Open and beat her archrival, Zina Lutrova. But when her coach imports British bad boy Alex Russell as her new training partner, will Penny be able to keep her laser-like focus?

Tennis is all Jasmine Randazzo has ever known. The daughter of two Grand Slam champions, she's hell-bent on extending her family’s legacy and writing her own happily-ever-after...until her chosen Prince Charming gives her the just-friends speech right before the biggest junior tournament of the year, the Outer Banks Classic.

With a powerful serve and killer forehand, newcomer Indiana Gaffney is turning heads. She’s thrilled by all of the attention, especially from Jack Harrison, Penny’s agent and hot older brother, except he keeps backing off every time things start heating up.

With so much at stake, dreams—and hearts—are bound to break. Welcome to OBX: Where LOVE is a four-letter word, on and off the court.

 

I’m going to be honest: I didn’t expect to like GAME. SET. MATCH. nearly as much as I did. I added it to my TBR list on GoodReads several months ago as an entry in a giveaway, and while I thought it sounded interesting, I didn’t give it much thought beyond that. When Jennifer Iacopelli herself contacted me and asked if I’d like to be part of her Street Team and help with the cover reveal and blog tour, I thought ‘What the heck? I like supporting authors, especially debut authors who need to get their names out there’. I’ve only read a couple of sports-related books, and since I’m personally not into sports, I wasn’t sure if GAME. SET. MATCH. would really do it for me. I’m thrilled to say I misjudged this book and that I loved it! 

GAME. SET. MATCH. is a well-written debut with dynamic characters, life lessons, friendship, sexual tension, and plenty of tennis-related action. We’re introduced in turn to the three main characters: Indy, Penny, and Jasmine, whose lives revolve around tennis. All three girls are very different; they have the same ultimate goal - to become the best tennis player possible - but their personalities, and how they go about reaching their goals is very different.

 

I always worry when there are so many points of view in a story, but Iacopelli did a fantastic job of giving each girl a distinctive voice and personality, while skillfully weaving their stories together. My favourite characters were Indy and Penny. I loved how determined Indy was, and how driven Penny was. I was happy to see them become friends, because they both really needed someone in their lives for support. I’ll admit that I hated Jasmine at first. She was the mean girl/queen bee type, but we quickly learned that it wasn’t necessarily that people really liked her, so much as they liked who she was: the daughter of famous tennis players. I began to sympathize with her when I realized the motivations behind her snarky attitude and that she was actually deeper than I first thought.

Iacopelli also did a great job with the romantic elements of the book. It was alternately sweet and sexy, and I liked all three guys: Jack (Penny’s oldest brother, and Indy’s love interest); Teddy (Penny’s other brother, and Jasmine’s love interest); and Alex (Penny’s love interest). They all had their ups and downs, and things didn’t come easy for any of the three couples, which I liked. I found myself rooting for each couple and enjoying their journeys and the sometimes-painful lessons they had to learn. My favourite boy was definitely Jack. He was confusing and gave Indy all kinds of mixed signals. He clearly liked her but was worried she was too young for him. It made him run hot (and I do mean hot!) and cold with her, which was frustrating, but I also loved the anticipation. I also really enjoyed the tension between Penny and Alex, and the unrequited love aspect of Jasmine’s interest in playboy Teddy. 

GAME. SET. MATCH. drew me in and kept me captivated from beginning to end. While the tennis aspects were over my head at first and I thought I might get tired of the sports theme, I ended up getting really invested in the girls’ successes and failures. This book is a perfect example of what the new adult genre should be - it has elements of sexiness to it, but it’s so much more than that. It’s about the bonds of friendship, family, love, and it has a really positive message about believing in yourself, going after your dreams, and never giving up. Iacopelli has written an incredibly strong debut, and I can’t wait to meet up with Indy, Penny, and Jasmine again and continue on with their stories.

*I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review*

 

Jennifer Iacopelli was born in New York and has no plans to leave...ever. Growing up, she read everything she could get her hands on, but her favorite authors were Laura Ingalls Wilder, L.M. Montgomery and Frances Hodgson Burnett all of whom wrote about kick-ass girls before it was cool for girls to be kick-ass. She got a Bachelor's degree in Adolescence Education and English Literature quickly followed up by a Master's in Library Science, which lets her frolic all day with her books and computers, leaving plenty of time in the evenings to write and yell at the Yankees, Giants and her favorite tennis players through the TV.

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Have you read GAME. SET. MATCH.? Do you enjoy sports-related fiction?

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