HEAT IT UP

HEAT IT UP                         STINA LINDENBLATT

Some games are hotter off the ice…

Sofia Phillips feels cursed. Her father cheated on her mother, her boyfriend cheated on her—she’s done with dating. A summer work-exchange program in Finland is the perfect escape. But instead of gaining experience as an athletic trainer, she’s cleaning toilets. Awesome. The trip is a disaster, and even better, she meets Kyle Bennett. In the sauna. Naked.

Sexy hockey player Kyle was the star right wing for an NHL team. But after an accident killed his wife and left him injured, Kyle has appreciated the “therapeutic” benefits of booze and puck bunnies. Now in Finland for the summer, he’s coaching in an elite hockey-training camp for teens. When Sofia's grandmother decides to set her up with a nice Finnish man, Sofia recruits Kyle as her make-believe boyfriend. Neither expects their first kiss to sizzle. And neither expects, while stranded on an island during a storm, to have a scorching night of passion.

But as their charade, and then their attraction, develops into something deeper, the past comes back, threatening to destroy them. They must decide if their feelings for each other are strong enough to survive—or it will be game over.

MY REVIEW:

     There are times in our lives when events happen that alter our lives.  That make us want to protect ourselves, sometimes body but a lot of times our hearts the most.  Causing us to run as fast and as far as we can.

     Which is exactly the case for Sofia Phillips. She had just received a double blow when it came to her longtime boyfriend from high school Ian.  You see she showed up at a party where she caught him making out with a girl the polar opposite of her.  But as that wasn’t enough he tells her he has been wanting to break up with her for a while but didn’t want to hurt her.  But he needed someone better in bed.

     Ian told her she was boring in bed and that he had been cheating on her for a long time.  She went home and made a decision to do the work exchange program to Finland since her mom was from there.  Plus, her grandma still lives there…

     But when she gets there, she is faced right away with a language problem with her grandmother.  So her grandmother brings her best friend over with her grandson Joni to translate. Or do the sneaky grandmothers have more in mind for these two.  But Sofia tell him she is not in the market looking for a boyfriend.  Being a footballer (Soccer player.)  He is used to a challenge so he does not give up.  She is not even sure he is translating correctly have the time. Things get a little dicey.

     Now there’s Kyle Bennett who is trying to outrun his own demons.  But he has nowhere to direct his anger so he is drinking his life away until he gets offered a job in Finland to coach at a hockey summer camp.  The camp is run by his friend Nik’s uncle so he takes it.

     You see the year before Kyle had been playing NHL hockey with the Minnesota Bears.  He had a beautiful wife Gabby.  But on their way home from a party a drunk driver runs a red light and hits them.  Killing Gabby, the drunk driver and passenger. 

It also killed his NHL career when it crippled his left leg.  His family were trying to help but the memories were choking him.  He needed to get away a new start….

     See how these two go about finding a new way of coping, living, discussing, sharing and loving.  There were some slow points that had my mind wondering because it seemed to drag but other than those couple of places it was a good story.  Joni is a character you want to boo at but in the end you are not sure???  But he just falls away which seems odd.  The rest of the cast give this enough meat to make you want to keep reading.  Nik seems to have real issues so I hope that there will be a book to explain him and what is going on with him.  I give this book 4 stars.  Provided by netgalley.com.  Follow us at:

www.1rad-readerreviews.com.