Blog Tour + Review + Giveaway: Seduced By The Game (Anthology)

Blurb ~

It’s time to drop the gloves and fight! Support the Fight against cancer that is.  This anthology of 8 brand new novellas is hot enough to melt the ice these players skate on. Featuring stories from popular New York Times & USA Today, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble bestselling authors, including Toni Aleo, Cassandra Carr, Cindy Carr, Jami Davenport, Catherine Gayle, Jaymee Jacobs, V.L. Locey, Bianca Sommerland, and Nikki Worrell.

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author - Toni Aleo TANGLED IN THE LACES

In Tangled in the Laces, Karson King is on the fast track to the pros and Lacey Martin is coming back from a hard fight against cancer and is terrified of him but their love is too much to ignore. Will Karson prove that he will protect her heart at all costs, or will he leave Lacey to pick up the pieces of her life once again?

My Thoughts:
First off, you need to look at this story as a prologue to a future book. If you go in with this attitude you won’t be disappointed. Basically, Karson King falls head over heels in love with his best friend sister, Lacey Martin. Lacey doesn't want anything to do with Karson for fear she will end up broken. By the end of Tangled in the Laces, Karson is forced to make a choice, but isn’t allowed to let Lacey know anything.

By the end of the novella, you feel horrible for Karson, because he’s made to look like the bad guy. Man I hope everything works out for him when the rest of the story comes out and I hope the true bastard gets what is coming to him.

Cassandra Carr and Cindy Carr HOOKING HANNAH

When Hannah attends an all-star game, she doesn't expect a hockey player of all people to turn her world upside down. Her sister is married to a player and Hannah never wanted that life. But Scott could change everything. For Scott's part, he has to know the woman who stirred his blood with just a look, and once he does, he realizes he wants Hannah to be his forever. Now to convince her...

My Thoughts:

In Hooking Hannah, we meet Scott Richard. After the All-Star game he finds himself drawn to gal who his hanging out with a player he knows. Comes to find out that she’s the sister-in-law to the guy. Instantly attracted to Hannah, he wants to get to know her better. Hannah is not one to chase hockey jocks, but she seems drawn to Scott.

Loved Hooking Hannah! It had steam and funny parts. I personally like the inner dialogue between Scott and Hannah. Scott pretty much won me over with his charm. For a quick little read, it sure packs in the steam and a pretty good story for being a novella.

Jami Davenport CRASHING THE BOARDS (Seattle Sockeyes 1.5)

Professional party crasher, Izzy Maxwell, needs the cooperation of reluctant party guest Cooper Black, the team captain of Seattle’s new hockey team, but Cooper can’t get past his anger over the team’s relocation to Seattle. Can Izzy melt Cooper’s frozen heart or will this party crash along with her fledgling business?

My Thoughts:

Crashing the Boards was an all right story. I can see a lot a of potential to this story. I get the feeling that the story between Izzy Maxwell and Cooper Black is just getting started. So, I’m curious how this is going to play out, because Cooper isn’t happy being in Seattle, so that should be interesting. I guess we have to wait and see. At least we don’t have to wait too long for the story to continue.

Catherine Gayle TAKING A SHOT (Portland Storm 2.5)

Katie Weber has had a crush on Jamie Babcock for almost two years, since he joined her father’s hockey team, the Portland Storm as an eighteen-year-old rookie. When cancer takes her health, her hair, and even her friends, she can’t bear to go to senior prom…until Jamie intervenes. 

My Thoughts:

All right, I cried in Taking a Shot. We have Katie Weber whose father is a hockey player and she’s had a crush on one of his teammates, Jamie Babcock. She decides to shave her head, because of her hair is starting to fall out cause of the cancer treatment. She just saw herself as no one ever wanting to be with, especially Jamie.

I really liked this story, because it’s sweet and sentimental. Jamie decides he wants to take Katie to prom. Jamie was just so sweet to her during the whole time. Sweet story. I don’t know if there is a future for these two or not.

Jaymee Jacobs A VALUABLE TRADE 

Bryan's life gets turned upside down when he gets traded to the Dallas Comets, and things get even messier when he meets Georgiana, the Director of Team Services. He's got a lot of work to do to prove his worth to his new team, but Georgiana's sure he'll prove to be a valuable trade.

My Thoughts:

I enjoyed A Valuable Trade. I thought it was a pretty good story, even though I had a little issue with Brian doing something he shouldn’t have done. However, it workout for the best for him and he sure was lucky. Once the matter was settled, I thought Brian and Georgiana were really cute together. The story could probably be a longer story, but it seems to manage fine as a novella.

V.L. Locey HEIR APPARENT

Superstar Cam Evans is fighting to climb out of a slump that`s growing worse with each day of living in denial. Fresh from the minors, Jacobi Neal is hungry for this chance to play back-up for the legendary goalie. Can two men battle each other, their inner demons, and the sizzling attraction building between them?

My Thoughts:

So, I read Heir Apparent. First off, M/M stories are not my cup of tea. They just don’t appeal to me. However, for those that enjoy these types of stories, Heir Apparent felt like a complete story. I believe this story will appeal to those who enjoy M/M romance.

Bianca Sommerland BLIND PASS (The Dartmouth Cobras 0.5)

Nothing could stop Tim Rowe, the assistant coach of the Dartmouth Cobras, from falling in love with Madeline, but love alone can’t satisfy every need. Sometimes, to reach the goal, you have to take the chance with a . . . Blind Pass.

My Thoughts:

I liked Blind Pass. I enjoyed the relationship between Madeline and Tim. There’s not much I can say about this novella. I like how Madeline decide to take a chance on Tim, when his brother was more her type.

Nikki Worrell - CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN (Prequel to Scorpions Series)

Keith Lambert is the captain of the Flyers—until he’s not. To everyone’s shock, he’s traded to the San Diego Scorpions. As if that’s not bad enough, Phoebe, his girlfriend of two years, decides she doesn’t love him enough to follow.

All alone in a new town, Keith is drawn to Kelly, his take out delivery girl. When she shows up at ice girl tryouts, he’s lost. She’s all he can see. Can he convince her to forget her past and take a chance on him or is he destined to be alone in a new town a little bit longer?

My Thoughts:

I have to say that I could see Captain, My Captain as a full-length novel. However, it was fine as a novella. I like how Keith and Kelly kind of latched on to one another. Overall, a nice read.

Overall thoughts on the book was quite please. 

Copy provided for blog tour (I still ended up getting my own copy).

Rating:

**Proud Supporters of Hockey Fights Cancer.

My Thoughts:

Excerpt from Taking a Shot by Catherine Gayle

“I’m going to murder that dipshit,” Dad said, but somehow his voice was growing distant, like he was moving farther away from us instead of coming closer.

Jamie’s lips quirked up on one side. “Zee and Soupy hauled him out of here. Looks like they were waiting on him to come in like that. I don’t know how much longer we have before he comes back to finish me off.” He laughed. How could he laugh about something like that? “So will you? Let me take you?”

“But my dad…” No matter how tempting it was to forget reason and agree to go to prom with Jamie, I knew it was nothing more than a dream. There was no chance my father would ever agree to let one of his teammates take me out, whether it was to my prom or anything else. That would be an absolute nonstarter.

Jamie moved his hand, and his fingers dipped beneath the edge of my scarf. I wanted to pull away, but the look in his eye held me in place while he used nothing more than his fingertips to caress my newly bald scalp. “I’ll deal with your dad. Let me worry about that.”

Maybe having no hair made my skin more sensitive, or maybe it was the effects of the chemo—I couldn’t be sure. All I knew was that my whole body was zinging with awareness from the way his fingertips were dancing over the skin an inch or two above my ear.

I’d dated a few boys before. I’d been kissed and touched in various ways, and it had all been exciting and wonderful and new, but this was so different. The way he was touching me was so much more intimate, and I felt more vulnerable and scared and raw than I could ever remember feeling in my life, but I didn’t want it to end. Because it was perfect.

It made me wish I wasn’t sick, that I was whole and alive and vibrant like I used to be.

I wasn’t entirely sure what came over me because everything I’d said about not wanting to be the bald girl at prom was still a massive deterrent to going, and I had a very real fear that my father would do actual physical harm to Jamie, but I said, “Okay. Yes. I’ll go with you.”

He smiled, one of those amazing, shy smiles he had that made his dimples come to attention and left me wanting to kiss him. “Good. Now I’d better go deal with Webs before he hurts one of the boys.”

I took his hand when he pulled it away from my head, holding it in mine for just a second. “Don’t…don’t let him hurt you, either.”

“Don’t worry about me,” he said, squeezing my hand and sending a flood of warmth through to every nerve ending I had.

Purchase Links:

Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ iBooks 

Links

Website:  http://www.seducedbythegame.com

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21399240-seduced-by-the-game?from_search=true

Giveaway

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