Eli worked his butt off to earn a spot with the Vermont Trailblazers, and he has absolutely no intention of losing it. Unfortunately, his second NHL season has brought a sophomore slump, an endless parade of team obligations, and the possibility that enthusiasm might not be enough to keep his plates spinning—or keep him from being sent to the minors. So naturally, this is the perfect time for Nolan Madolora—his coach’s son, his sister’s ex, and the man Eli had an impossible crush on a decade ago—to walk back into his life.
Nolan knows a thing or two about not fitting in, which makes getting paid to figure out why the Trailblazers work so well together almost funny—he’s in Vermont to conduct a team culture audit and deliver an objective assessment. What he shouldn’t do is get involved with one of the players, especially when that man is Eli Parker: his ex’s little brother, ten years his junior, and all grown up in ways Nolan is trying very hard not to notice.
When Nolan and Eli stumble across an old set of unsent letters at the arena, amateur sleuthing gives them an excuse to spend more time together—and makes ignoring their growing attraction increasingly impossible to resist. Eli’s old crush has a chance of becoming something very real, while Nolan’s carefully maintained objectivity doesn’t stand a chance against the one person he never thought to look at twice. The closer they get—to the truth and to each other—the harder it becomes to remember all the reasons getting involved is a terrible idea.
Copy received from author for an honest reivew
Another wonderful installment of the Vermont Trailblazers series from Amy Aislin, and I think it is my favourite. Yes. Probably.
I enjoy a book when the sports star is not all yes, I am the favourite, I am amazing, look at me go. Eli is struggling with a sophomore slump, and using a saying my boss likes to say,he is like an old bed sheet - spreading himself really thin and covering a lot of areas, doing way too much.
He is one bad game away from cracking.
Nolan - coach's son, Eli's long time crush, and now he is in front of Eli every day.
Oh, but what could go wrong here - or really, really right?
And when a bit of a mystery drops in their laps, well, who can resist trying to solve it?
I really enjoyed- particularly Nolan's - dedications to solving their little mystery.
All the while they are falling for each other. It really is quite a sweet and wholesome story. It is found family, friendships, the struggles we all have in life, and finally belonging.
I also really enjoyed seeing more of the couples from the previous books, and how they all are one big family.
It is always sad when a favourite series ends, but on to new beginnings.
Amy’s lived with her head in the clouds since she first picked up a book as a child, and being fluent in two languages means she’s read a lot of books! She first picked up a pen on a rainy day in fourth grade when her class had to stay inside for recess. Tales of treasure hunts with her classmates eventually morphed into love stories between men, and she’s been writing ever since. She writes evenings and weekends—or whenever she isn’t at her full-time day job saving the planet at Canada’s largest environmental non-profit.
An unapologetic introvert, Amy reads too much and socializes too little, with no regrets. She loves connecting with readers. Join her Facebook Group to stay up-to-date on upcoming releases and for access to early teasers, find her on Instagram, or sign up for her infrequent newsletter here.
