Playing Hurt (Aces Hockey: Book 6) by Kelly Jamieson

4 Stars

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group, Loveswept

Date of publication: July 17th, 2018

Genre: Sports, Romance

Series: Aces Hockey

Major Misconduct – Book 1

Off Limits – Book 1.5

Icing – Book 2

Top Shelf – Book 3

Back Check – Book 4

Slap Shot – Book 5 (review here)

Playing Hurt – Book 6

Where you can find Playing Hurt: Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Book synopsis (from Goodreads):

He’s playing hurt. She’s laying low. And they’re both flirting with disaster.
 
“Kelly Jamieson is my go-to author for hockey romance.”—Jami Davenport
 
Chase: The last thing I’d ever want to do is let my team down. After overcoming my bad-boy reputation, I was dominating on the ice. But things aren’t going so well this season, and even my parents think I’m partying again. Now I’m really worried about my career. The only bright spot in my life is the Twitter flirtation I’ve struck up with pop princess Jordyn Banks. Turns out she’s a huge hockey fan—and she’s willing to wager a date on her favorite team. . . .

Jordyn: Even though I’m an L.A. fan now, I’ve always had a soft spot for the Aces, since I grew up in Chicago. Then I lose a bet to Chase Hartman, and suddenly I’m up close and personal with a pro athlete who’s anything but soft. Not only is Chase the hottest guy I’ve ever met, but he’s also secretly super sweet. As if I had time for a relationship . . . yeah, right. But when I suddenly have nothing but time on my hands, he’s the only one who understands. Now, with both of our careers at stake, Chase is tempting me to put my heart on the line too.

My review:

I needed to read Playing Hurt. I needed to read a romance where I didn’t have to use my brain to figure out complex plots/relationships. I was able to relax and enjoy reading this book. Which is something I haven’t been able to do in a long time!!

Playing Hurt is the 6th book in the Aces Hockey. This book can be read as a stand-alone. While the other characters from the earlier 5 books are in Playing Hurt, they do not take over the book. Which is something I liked.

The plot of Playing Hurt was cute. Chase starts flirting with Jordyn over Twitter. Eventually, they go on a date after she loses a bet to him. Sparks fly but nothing happens. It wasn’t until Jordyn suffers a vocal injury that lays her up for a year that she reconnects with Chase. That is where the story takes off.

I liked Chase, even if he was a stubborn SOB. Why was he stubborn? Well, he refused to go to the Dr and checked out. Even when he was in obvious pain. So yeah, that was the one part of him I didn’t like. Everything else, I loved. He was romantic (hello, surprise trip to Aruba!!) and more importantly, he knew how to communicate. Well, except for his injury. I did feel bad for him. His parents were jerks. Withholding love because he wanted to quit hockey as a child. That was awful.

I loved Jordyn. She was down to earth. She was sweet. She knew how to hold her own with Chase. My only issue with her was that she was almost too nice. There were a few points in the book where I wanted her to do something naughty to spice up her character. She was almost too sugary sweet. But that aside, I loved her. She was perfect for Chase. She was the ying to his yang.

The romance part of this book was sweet. I loved how the author chose to keep their relationship on a slow burn for the first half of the book. It made the chemistry between them insane. Sparks flew when they interacted. Be it Twitter, text, face to face or phone. And in turn, those sparks made for some pretty intense sex scenes.

I loved the end of the book. While it was your typical happily ever after, I had no issue imagining Chase and Jordyn lasting in real life.

What I liked about Playing Hurt:

A) Chase and Jordan’s Twitter romance

B) How romantic Chase was

C) How realistic their romance was

What I disliked about Playing Hurt:

A) Chase being so stubborn. I wanted to smack him upside his head

B) Jordyn being sugary sweet.

C) Chase’s parents

I would give Playing Hurt an Adult rating. There is explicit sex. There is language. There is some very mild violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

There are no trigger warnings for Playing Hurt.

I would reread Playing Hurt. I would recommend this book to family and friends.

I would like to thank Random House Publishing Group, Loveswept, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Playing Hurt.

All opinions stated in this review of Playing Hurt are mine.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**