Note: I received a complimentary from the author. It does not colour my views in any way.
It was a strong, solid read…until I read what happened in the last chapter. Eep. Jumping the gun, much?
There isn't a lot of dialogue, but the prose is quite engaging. I love the passionate language; it reflects the raw, searing attraction between Alana and Matt and expresses in more than words just how much they got under each other's skin. These two characters are at different stages of their lives, and I dig the way their nature (well, more like Alana's) is a big conflict. Matt could use some air—a little breather, a little release—while Alana could use some earth—ground under her feet, stability.
While Alana tries not to make apologies for her free spirit, she recognises the consequences of her actions and isn't completely flippant about them. I don't believe she's ignorant or irresponsible; it's just that she hasn't had the chance to be actually responsible for something before, and now she has a ranch with dozens of employees and their families to answer to. In addition, Matt's six-year-old daughter Sophie has taken a liking to her, making her every move monumentally consequential with respect to the kid's affections. Everything is understandably off-kilter for such a young woman, still struggling to find her place where she seemingly doesn't belong, suddenly burdened with responsibilities—ones that affect lives—she never asked for. But just as she makes mistakes, she learns from them and accepts her shortcomings. Honestly, I don't appreciate how she's unfairly judged by some people for living her darn life. It's her development as a character that makes this such a great read for me.
I do like Matt and acknowledge the hardships of his being a single father, and I am overwhelmed by how his connection with Alana is so intense, so palpable. Matt takes a leap and makes a choice, one that is not risk-free but with possibilities of a bright, happy future. The right woman is worth all the hard calls, after all. I like that he balances his decisions with both his daughter and himself in mind, that he doesn't deprive himself but also doesn't neglect Sophie and her best interests.
All of the Heart of the Game series ends with an engagement, but I can't say I'm comfortable with that here. It's, I don't know, too easy, too quick. In a lot of ways, Alana is still growing, and I just don't think she's ready to be tied down. That proposal feels too much like a curveball thrown her way, but what the heck. Who am I get in the way of a couple's HEA? :p
This is a smartly written story with lots of heart and heat, a good amount of detailed and informed baseball plays, and a well-executed plot line. That parallel between the prickly neighbour's relationship with his estranged sister and Alana's own relationship with her family is particularly clever. I like Aares' kind of sports romance. Her heroines are smart and self-assured, if with a few insecurities and not-conductive-to-relationship flaws. Her heroes are not all-important baseball players who make the plot, but are simple people who just happen to be baseball players and have their stories to share—really outstanding stories when in the hands of Aares.