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Rookie Move by Sarina Bowen Also by this author: Him, The Fifteenth Minute, Us, Good Boy, Goodbye Paradise, Stay, Hello Forever, Temporary, Heartland
Series: Brooklyn Bruisers #1
Published by Berkley on September 6, 2016
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Falling for Colleague, Second Chance Romance
Character(s): Hockey Players
Pages: 336
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The first novel in a sexy new series featuring the hockey players of the Brooklyn Bruisers and the women who win their hearts—from the USA Today bestselling author of the Ivy Years series.
In high school they were the perfect couple—until the day Georgia left Leo in the cold...
Hockey player Leo Trevi has spent the last six years trying to do two things: get over the girl who broke his heart, and succeed in the NHL. But on the first day he’s called up to the newly franchised Brooklyn Bruisers, Leo gets checked on both sides, first by the team’s coach—who has a long simmering grudge, and then by the Bruisers’ sexy, icy publicist—his former girlfriend Georgia Worthington.
Saying goodbye to Leo was one of the hardest things Georgia ever had to do—and saying hello again isn’t much easier. Georgia is determined to keep their relationship strictly professional, but when a press conference microphone catches Leo declaring his feelings for her, things get really personal, really fast....
Erin: For anyone who has read Sarina Bowen’s Ivy League series (and if you haven’t, omg where have you been?!) and loved them, her new Brooklyn Bruisers series will be just like coming home. The first book, Rookie Move has everything fans of Sarina’s has come to expect: lovable characters, some fantastic and witty banter, swoony guys, strong women, and lots and lots of hockey. This one delivered on all of that, and then some. I knew going into this book that I’d love it, by the end I was in awe of just how much.
Loyal readers will remember Leo Trevi and Georgia Worthington. We met them both in The Fifteenth Minute. Though their appearances were brief, they weren’t easily forgettable so I was really looking forward to getting their story. From the very first page of Rookie Move, I was completely enthralled. Georgia is my kind of girl. Strong and fierce, a little clumsy, a bit vulnerable though she tries not to show it, and approachable. She’s got a job she loves that she’s trying desperately to hold onto. Not an easy feat when her father has just been hired to be the head coach of the NHL team she’s the head of PR for … and REALLY not easy when she finds out that the Bruisers newest player is none other than her high school sweetheart and first and only love, Levi Trevi.
There are years of silence between them and so many things left unsaid. She broke his heart right before their high school graduation when she broke up with him, but he’s never gotten over her and neither has she. Levi … I’m here to tell you that a swoonier guy I have not seen in a very long time. His charisma and personality just drips from the screen. He’s perfect, but not so perfect that he’s unbelievable.
Leo reached up with one of his long, edible-looking arms and tugged her back down onto his spectacular chest. “Fuck that,” he said. “You and I don’t have one-night stands. We have forever night stands.”
Georgia’s heart took an hour long tango lesson when he said that. When she’d been young and deep in puppy love, she and Leo had used the word “forever” with each other. And then when they hit the skids, it had hurt worse than anything. She turned her face to the side, turning away from all the brilliance that was Leo. It was hard to think rationally while lying on his body.
But Leo only began nuzzling the back of her neck. “You can run, but you can’t hide, Georgia girl. Even if you give me the cold shoulder on the plane today. Even if you go all shy on me. It’s on.”
All the everloving swoony sighs, right?!
And these two together? Whoa. The chemistry is off the charts sizzling. But it’s their connection, their sweet and innocent (though that got shattered by the attack on Georgia) first love that shines through. Often, when an author keeps referring to the past, I find myself just wanting to keep things in the present, but with these two, I reveled in their high school relationship. It’s so a part of who they are now that’s it’s a vital part of each of them and has made them the people they are when they cross paths after more than six years. The fact that besides for one dark moment they both look back with such joy and love was just about the sweetest thing ever.
And let’s talk secondary characters for a moment. Each and every one adds so much to the book. From Nate to Becca to O’Doul to Silas, I fell in love with them all. Seeing DJ (Leo’s brother and the star of The Fifteenth Minute) was just a cherry on top. Then there’s the hockey. It’s always written so well you might swear you can hear the swish of the skates over the ice and feel the breeze as the players skate by it’s that good.
This book was just … gah, so so good, and Leo Trevi just moved to my list of very favorite book boyfriends! Swoony and sexy, he made me sigh SO many times. And I loved Georgia so much and the two of them together were just fabulous. This book made me laugh and cry and I loved every single minute of it. Second chance love stories really just get to me, and when two people are supposed to be together like Leo and Gigi, it makes it all the better when things finally work out. Their story touched my heart and made me cry for them but in the end I was all smiles and warm, gooey feelings.
I am dying for book 2 now because this series is off to a most excellent start.
She's a Texan, though she drinks her tea plain and NOT sweet. She loves cheesecake, strawberry limeade's from Sonic and her favorite color is purple. In her books, she loves an HEA, but she never minds if the road is rough to get there, as long as the reward is worth the struggle.
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| Overall: | 4.5 |
