Shot on Gold by Jaci Burton Release Date: February 13, 2018 Publisher: Berkley Book #14 in the Play-by-Play series Number of Pages: 344 Kindle Edition Source: borrowed from MCL Contemporary Romance/Sports M/F Rating: XXX Read 4/13/18 – 4/17/18
A few things before I dive into this one. If you’re someone who pays attention to my “dates read” section you may think this book was not engaging since it took me so long to get through it. That was not the case. I was smack dab in the middle of a couple of hectic weeks while I was enjoying this story. You may also know I wasn’t particularly enamored with The Final Score after waiting so long to read that story. I didn’t dislike it, but it sure wasn’t what I’ve come to expect from Jaci Burton. My hope was this book would rekindle my love for this series. Happily, it did!
I’m glad the author had a disclaimer at the beginning of this book regarding the Olympics and how they work and how her publishing schedule works. All of you that know me have realized by now that I’m a stickler for timeline details and fact checking. Since Ms. Burton made the effort to explain to her readers why there were professional hockey players playing for Team USA and that she, of course, had to change some details to fit the story, I wasn’t constantly being taken out of the story when things didn’t add up exactly as I thought they should. In case you forget…I’m a huge Olympics fanatic! So anything off would normally throw a red flag up in my brain.
Finally, let’s get on with the actual story. As much as I love Will, Amber was my absolute favorite in this couple. Will is sexy, kind, funny, and patient so there’s a lot ot love there. But the mixture of Amber’s inexperience, not just sexually but also socially, with her confidence when she was having new experiences made her a powerhouse. Inexperience does not equal uneducated when it comes to Amber. She knows what she wants and goes after it with all she has…be it a gold medal or a roll in the hay. She’s not afraid to admit her inexperience in the sack, but still knows how to express what she wants while she’s between the sheets. With the experience that Will has added to his confidence and Amber’s personality, this couple was meant to be.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of this story is Amber finding that just because someone is your competitor doesn’t mean they can’t be your friend. Supporting someone else’s routine, performance, etc. does not mean you don’t want to beat them. It just means that you know what each other are going through in a way nobody else really can so you can be more supportive than anyone else really can. Amber learned, for the first time, how to forge friendships and relationships and that actually helped her grow as an athlete instead of making her stall out.
The rest of the friends Amber and Will make while in the Olympic Village are a fun and interesting bunch, to say the least. I’m hoping to see some stories that include them some more, even if just as peripheral characters again.
All In Good Time 