The Sloth Zone: A Sweet Romance

The Skaters of Sequoia Valley #2

by Tomi Tabb

Gemma is a professional princess who's ready to find her Prince Charming. Except, there's one problem. . .fairy tales don't exist in real life.

On the ice, finding love is simple. All it takes is a fairy godmother, the wave of a magic wand, and three simple words.

But for Gemma, finding love off the ice has never mirrored the fairy tale.

Living out of a suitcase and on the road most weeks of the year as a professional figure skater has made dating and finding the right guy nearly impossible.

Tired and frustrated at the lackluster results she’s had with dating apps, Gemma decides to take control of her own fate.

While visiting her best friend in the small town of Sequoia Valley, she agrees to go out on a series of dates from a list of guys her friends have put together, and as a fallback, applies to be the next bachelorette on a reality dating show.

However, as Gemma comes to discover, the journey to getting a happily ever after is never straightforward. It’s filled with a series of plot twists, unexpected encounters, and even sloths.

Will Gemma find love in Sequoia Valley? Or will she be hit with Cupid’s arrow elsewhere?

If you enjoyed the film "Ice Princess", this book is for you!



-Friends to lovers
-Small town
-Ice Skater
-No third act break up
-Grand gestures
-Overcoming injuries
-Closed Door
-Feel good romance

216 pages, ebook

Published March 24, 2024

About the author

Tomi is a self-proclaimed caffeine addict who is more than excited to be able to share the inner workings of her mind with you through her characters.

She writes romance with a focus on royalty and sports.

When she's not working, Tomi loves to hunt for pumpkin flavored foods and watch home renovation shows.

Connect with Tomi:
https://linktr.ee/tomitabbauthor

Website: https://tomitabb.com

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/tomi-...

Reviews

[Camille Dayton Fostering.literacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Sloth Zone is such fun sports romance! I really enjoyed seeing the worlds of ice skating and baseball collide. Gemma is an ice skater with Dreams on Ice and is considering retiring and choosing another career. Tim is an Elementary school teacher with a past in baseball. When the two of them meet they have no idea that a mutual friend has already been trying to set them up! Reading about their journey to trust each other, fall in love, and create a life together was such a sweet experience.

Here are a few things that I loved in this book:
- Halloween carnival
- Reference to the no capes rule in The Incredibles
- The fun and thoughtful dates
- The not so real part of Reality TV

Overall it was a 5 star read for me! Thank you to the author for the advance copy of this book. A positive review of this book is not required.

[Merry Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gemma is a professional skater in the show Dreams on Ice as Cinderella and she loves entertaining the children. But when she suffers an injury she is given a two week recuperation period and decides to go to Sequoia to visit her staking friends, Frankie and Charlie. All she wants is to continue to skate and have the love and closeness her friends have. So she signs up for a dating show, at the urging of her friends but she doesn't seem to think anything will come by it. She just would like romance in her life. In a strange way, she meets Tim, a retired baseball player due to Tommy John surgery, and now a grammar school teacher. He is also a super hero comic collector and loves sloths. The two seem to hit it off and his creative dates really puts Gemma over the top. But even better is how he truly, deeply cares for her. With a few ups and downs as they go along, including the dating show, we are treated to the best HEA at the end! I can't wait for more. You will really love Gemma and Tim together. What great characters in this book including the return of Frankie and Charlie who are rehearsing for a world skating championship as well as all the competitions leading up to that one. This book will make you smile! I received and ARC of this book but the opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

[Ria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gemma is taking a break from skating with Dreams on ice after an injury and goes to visit her best friend Frank ie in Sequoia valley.
While there she applies for a dating show and desperate to find love she tries going on some dates suggested by her friends.
Then she meets Tim and everything clicks into place.
Now a reality dating show and continuing ice skating with a bad injury doesn't seem so appealing.
Yet the path to true love never runs smoothly and she and Tim have a lot of obstacles to overcome before they get their happily ever after so moving at the pace of sloths getting to know each other is just perfect.
This was amazing, a lovely follow up to Frankie and Charlie's story in The rules of the rink.
Sweet, feel good romances but not cheesy in the respect the situations, dramas etc are true to life.
Really enjoy this author and will definitely read more by her.
Received an ARC copy of this for a review and I'm a new fan.

[Alicia Kullas · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading The Rules of the Rink, I was already familiar with the main characters. What Tomi Tabb does well is to tell a story without requiring the reader to keep a detailed notebook identifying who all of the characters are as well as their relationships to each other. Gemma’s arrival at a point in her life where her direction could be changing both professionally as well as personally was key. Introducing such an everyday man as Tim was refreshing as again he was not a cookie-cutter type of male lead. The tie in to the Scottsdale Sloths was very entertaining. It was a story that left me hugging both Gemma and Tim and rooting for their continued success!

[Nona · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this second story in the Skaters of Sequoia Valley series.
I this story of Gemma and Tim tells of love not found for the Professional Skater Gemma in the beginning. . Her career is on the edge due to an injury.
Gemma finds a man, in Tim, that not only bolsters her spirit but makes sure that what she decides is her decision, not what someone else thinks is best for her.
This book is a good life lesson for being yourself and not trying to change to please someone else.

[Ashley Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect fall romance

This book was so cute. I did start thinking Tim was too perfect but I connected so much with Gemma’s emotions that I kept going. And you know what, I fell in love! This book made me realize that Tim does indeed have flaws, but in Gemma’s eyes, they aren’t flaws at all. Which is exactly how it should be when you find your person. I highly recommend this sweet, kisses only romance. I can’t wait to backtrack and read book 1!

[Wendy Droke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the ice skater + teacher pairing of these main characters and the very real handling of injuries and how they change your lives trajectory. This book kept me interested and curious how the romance would work out but also had some "You know this would all be fixed if you just communicated" moments.
Thanks for the ARC, these are my honest opinions.

[ABurch74 · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Sloth Zone

A fitting follow-up to The Rules of the Rink. The author does a great job developing the relationship between Tim and Gemma while also reconnecting the reader with Frankie and Charlie. The characters are the types of friends you hope to have and strive to be. This was a very enjoyable book. I look forward to more.

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An easy to love story that won’t disappoint. A figure skater who loves her profession but seems lonely. Will she get her wish someday. Don’t miss out once it’s released.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute skater romance.. Fun and easy-to-read..

[D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun story. Gemma wants to find her person and goes on quite a journey to find him. Tim didn't seem to be the one but then he did. It was a great story to get lost in.

[Kara Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really cute! I love the ice skating aspect. It’s a sport i’ve always found so intriguing and beautiful. The romance was fun and clean and I loved that we got to see Frankie and Charlie again! I was glad that Gemma was able to find her way and make the decisions that would ultimately make her happy.

🦥Contemporary Romance
🦥 2nd in series/can standalone
🦥Kissing Only
🦥No Swearing