Game Play by Lynda Aicher

Game Play by Lynda Aicher

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.

I really enjoyed Game Play. It’s not often that I read sports romances in which the main female character is also an athlete and I can say I have never read one in which she was a hockey player. So for that fact alone Ms. Aicher gets beaucoup points – which she ultimately did not need as I found both Samantha and Dylan to be fascinating characters and their story kept me entertained from beginning to end.

Although I’ve never been accused of being athletic, I could appreciate Samantha’s frustration with her situation and the resentment it caused. Born, bred, and fed a life of hockey, it’s in her blood and the fact that she can no longer play in an official capacity has left her feeling bitter about her forced departure from the world of competitive hockey. Refusing to follow in her father’s footsteps and become a hockey coach, Samantha has reluctantly mapped out a new life plan that does not involve hockey. Reconciled to her new path, she has begun to cut hockey out of her life as much as possible. But because of her position with the U.S. Women’s Hockey Team, a chance encounter with Dylan Rylie thrusts her back into the world she is trying so hard to avoid. The connection between Rylie and Samantha is electric, enough so that her rather cold shutdown after they have sex the first time was as shocking as it was hot. Fortunately the author gives us enough insight into Samantha to make her shutdowns and avoidance over the course of the book understandable. It turns out though, that Samantha has met her match when it comes to stubbornness and Rylie is intent on getting to know her, and not just because she was the best sex he’d ever had.

While Game Play is a romance, quite a bit of the story centers on and is effected by Samantha’s journey to find her new place in the world. While their intense passion guarantees some freaking hot sex scenes, it also insures that when push comes to shove, the ones you love are the ones who can inflict the most damage. As much as I like Samantha and understood her position, I was amazed by Rylie’s persistent pursuit. The man was borderline masochistic with the way he kept putting his heart out there for her to push it away. But a man doesn’t become a professional hockey player by giving up easily and he proved to be just what she needed, even if their timing was terrible. I will admit that I definitely shed a few tears while reading Game Play and they were well worth it. I absolutely loved the ending the author crafted for the couple. Ms. Aicher is off to a great start with the Power Play series and I look forward to reading the next book.

Check out the Game Play by Lynda Aicher Blog Tour post on Wicked Reads.


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