Design: 5/5

I can’t but give this book a perfect design score. The Hockey Hotties series design is on point, the juxtaposition of the black and white cover models that are just… everything… and the font combos and their colors… it is just pure perfection. *Oh hum. I wished that I would have designed these books. But can we just talk for a superficial minute about the cover model depicting Warner? … I mean, if we are capable of forming words? I don’t think that I am. This guy makes my lady bits do the cha-cha – holy hot on a hockey stick! This guy is a 10, all-the-fucking-way. That is all, no more words are needed… just drool away.

Review: 5/5

How does Piper Rayne manage to make their “Hockey Hotties” series better and better with every book?!?! Seriously! It’s almost too much to handle – I’ve fallen in lust now with four couples since “Sneaking Around with #34” is the fourth in the series. It’s such a hardship… lusting over literary hockey hotties *oh sigh*. I very impatiently awaited this fourth book for over six months, and per Piper Rayne’s usual MO, I waited on pins and needles – on baited breath – with great expectations – for this fourth book because way to leave us on a cliffhanger in Ford’s story, sheesh! Cruel and unusual punishment, much?! BUT it was so worth it!!!! Imogen and Warner’s story is… everything. I’m still in a hazy lust-cloud after devouring the book in record time. This is where we insert those heart-eye emojis, for sure!

Seriously, how do the Piper Rayne (PR) gals do it though? Every single one of their books surpass what came before it – how is it possible? And you know my absolute favorite part about any Piper Rayne story? I’m glad you asked, because lemme tell you: it’s not just the chemistry that they create between their two main characters or their steamy-steamy romance and sexy scenes, it’s not even the final moment when those two main characters finally get together, it’s not just the entire world that they create for us to get lost in, or the details (which I effing loooove!), and it’s not even the plot twists and turns that leave us jaw-dropped and has our heads spinning, it’s not even the phenomenal writing… it’s the combination of EVERYTHING that makes the book a Piper Rayne book. Their stories – their “special sauce” – and the worlds that they create for our pleasure are a gift.

So now that we’ve gotten through that Piper Rayne love-fest above, I have to let you know that I love-love-love the Hockey Hotties series – consider this your disclaimer and let it be known that I’m a little partial. Juuust a little… Aiden + Saige, Maxim + Paisley, Ford + Lana… ugh, their stories are just… everything. And now Warner and Imogen join their ranks – I am so hot and bothered… so bothered in the best possible way. And can we just talk about the very seductive covers? Can we? Because we need to!!! They don’t leave much to the imagination! And I like it! And lemme tell you that I’ve never loved hockey as much as I do now – the NHL and their ratings can thank Piper Rayne for that!!! No joke (I hope they’re throwing you some kick-backs for the increase in ratings).

We got glimpses of both Imogen and Warner in the previous stories, particularly in Ford’s story. And I have to tell you that I loved Imogen’s character in Ford’s story. She seems like the “it” girl who everyone loves, who is so smart and beautiful, charismatic and funny, so spunky, talented and can totally handle herself in every situation, lights up every room that she walks into, and is the type of girlfriend that every girl would love to have. To counter-balance that, the glimpses we got of Warner’s character prior to this book left us (obviously) questioning what happened between him and Ford and him and Imogen, but since we were so invested in Ford’s story prior to this story, we (the readers) found ourselves not necessarily loving Warner, because if Ford hated him, we had to hate him too – right? Well, with this book, be prepared to effing LOVE Warner! The guy is absolutely the ENTIRE package, and you simply do not get enough of his humble charisma and charm, he is self-confident without being cocky (he’s got just the right amount of cocky), he’s devoted to his family and those he loves, and he’s true to himself – did I mention that he’s as beautiful on the outside as he is inside? So, so very hot and sexy… I digress. Can we be superficial for a minute and just take the moment to drool? Go ahead, eye that cover model who depicts Warner… go ahead, take your time.

This story reveals to us what transpired between not just Warner and Imogen, but also with Ford. It explains the dynamic between them all, giving us glimpses to their past to explain their current life and then how and why this story progresses. What I love about this story is that there’s no “bad guy” per se, and there’s no major emotional rollercoaster for us to go on with a “bad guy” or a “who dunnit” scenario. My anxiety thanks you for that. The storyline flows seamlessly and is so free-flowing, having you flip the pages so quickly because you don’t want to miss a thing, and you desperately need to know what is going to happen next. The small flashbacks are perfect, and I didn’t mind “leaving” the current time and story to go back in time to learn what happened before (sometimes I don’t like leaving the “now” to go to the “then” when I’m invested in a story, but the way the PR gals did it here was so perfect).

Imogen and Warner’s characters are just so wonderful, and are paired so interestingly: they are different in all the ways that matter and are similar in other ways that make such sense. Their chemistry is simply off the charts and you find yourself saying, “come on! Just get together already!! You’re meant to be together!” That’s right, that’s a real conversation that will happen in your head (or out loud) while you’re reading. And then when the “truth” is revealed in this story, it’s not some over-the-top “O-M-G” moment (like some big deceit or a stalker or something crazy plot-twist like so many other stories will have, not that I’m complaining about those – not at all), but instead, what is revealed is just so fitting for Warner and Imogen’s story.

What I did find curious in this story though is that it makes you start disliking Ford a little bit – again. In Aiden and Maxim’s stories, he was depicted as a selfish, self-centered “playa” and was kind of annoying. Let’s just call it how we see it… even though we really do love Ford and his sexy-sexy body… I mean he’s a great guy…. But in his own story (the third book in the series) all of the “hows” and “whys” were revealed and I have to admit that I really (like REALLY) liked Ford. So when I found myself not loving Ford as much throughout this story – ugh, that was hard. BUT don’t worry, that’s only short-lived. But this brings up a different point, and that is that a successful book is one that makes us FEEL – whether that is joy, or frustration, or anger, or makes us turned on – and but OF COURSE this book succeeds in that! Piper Rayne are masters of that! That is the mastery of their writing style, of their amazing characters, and of the incredible stories and worlds that they craft for our reading pleasure. With that said, now I have to say that we sadly have to wait about another few weeks for the next book… back to the vicious Piper Rayne cycle of torture.. awaiting their next book. And ladies (the Piper Rayne ladies, that is), let me just be very clear about this: I VERY impatiently wait for the next book – for this series as well as all of your other series! (Yes, I’m airing grievances here). So if you need an extra proofreader or just need a fly on the wall during your writing or brainstorming, or make that Starbucks run which will get me glimpses of pages – I would be happy to fill that role for you.. I mean, someone’s gotta do it, right?! I’ll wait for your call, but until then, this book was absolutely amazing – everything in fact – and is so perfect for this series that is quite honestly Top 3 of any of the Piper Rayne series! It is a MUST-READ!!!! So enjoy, and you can thank the PR gals later.

Amazon excerpt:

I have a reputation for being tight-lipped. You learn quick when you become a professional hockey player to be guarded with the media, so I’ve worked hard to cover up the mistakes of my youth.

But when I’m traded to the Florida Fury, where my ex–best friend is the starting right wing, I’m forced to confront my past. Ford and I have a lot of history, especially when it comes to his little sister, Imogen.

My heart still lurches in my chest when I see her.

My hands want to reach out and touch her.

My mouth wants to keep apologizing.

She’s the only woman who ever made me want more. But she’s also the one who fell victim to my most regrettable decision.

I’m not a believer in fate, but I must be back in her world for a reason. I’ve fought for everything I’ve gotten and I’m not backing down from what I know will be the best thing in my life.