Review: Meh, Wow and Warning
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 26, 2013
This 99 cent bundle showed up on a recommended list, and the stories sounded interesting, so I gave it a try. I had never read any of the authors before, but I like hockey stories, so I downloaded it. I felt "meh" about Fastball, downloaded the related books by Juliana Stone in The Barker Triplets Boxed Set (still cheaper even though I had book one), and can't wait for the third part of the trilogy to come out by Jennifer Lyon. The description is a little misleading on "three full-length books." The third book, The Proposition, is billed as book one of a trilogy. Most trilogies I read have a definite conclusion at the end of book one, and you can choose to continue to books two and three. This is a warning that The Proposition ends in a cliffhanger, as does book two, Possession. By the end of book two, the two main storylines introduced in book one are still not resolved. It is also worth mentioning that the heat level increases from the first book of the bundle to the last book.That said, I liked The Proposition a lot. Enough so that I am avidly anticipating the third book. Lyon introduces a couple of very interesting characters in Kat and Sloane. Both are damaged and strong at the same time. Their relationship evolves and the side characters are great. Although the interaction between Kat and Sloan is front and center, the plot involving the incident why Kat has been in survival mode for six years keeps the suspense going.Juliana Stone's Offside was really good, too. Stone does a wonderful job of getting inside the heads of both Billie Jo and Logan. I like the way she makes internal observations almost like a conversation. It is like they are talking to themselves inside their heads and then the actual conversation interrupts the stream of consciousness. This technique made the book a delight to read and added a lot of humor. I laughed out loud reading one of the locker room scenes. I also liked the way Stone doesn't sugarcoat the down side to real life. People lose their jobs, some people are catty just because they can be, sexism is often accompanied by intimidation, and illness happens and has consequences. This is one of the first romance books I've read where the difficult relationship between sisters is a major plot point. All around a great read with likeable, complicated characters.Fastball was my least favorite. Maddie and Jake were likeable, but all the angst about the professional predicament was just too weak to carry the story. The suspense and danger at the end seemed tacked on. It took me days to finish the book because it was just plain boring. My advise is to skim through the first book to get to the better books in the bundle.