4 stars
This was a very good story. I liked both Candy and Nolan and their story was a very nice Christmas romance. This is the first time I've read a book by this author and I liked it well enough I'd be willing to try more from her in the future. BTW...this book is currently (Christmas of '15) free on Amazon.
Candy is an ex figure skater who is now trying to figure out what to do with her life. She lost her parents at a young age and skating was all she had. A broken ankle ended her skating career and now she's at odds trying to figure out what's next.
Nolan is a hockey player for the NHL. He loves his sport and lives for his time on the ice. When Nolan is home from being on the road he likes to practice on a pond that is partially on his property. Unfortunately, Candy is his next door neighbor and they're constantly fighting over the pond.
There's a very strong attraction between Nolan and Candy but it's hard for either of them to embrace because of their constant fighting. Ostensibly, the fighting between Candy and Nolan is because of her toe pick, Nolan insisting that when she uses the toe pick to jump she leaves divots in the ice that cause the pucks to veer off course when he's practicing. In reality, Nolan knows Candy's ankle isn't fully healed and he hates seeing her constantly trying to make jumps that are just going to hurt her more. Since he doesn't feel he can make a comment about her injury, he makes them about the supposed divots. When Candy accidentally breaks through the ice and almost dies, Nolan saves her and it changes their relationship. It also helps that a blizzard gives them a good excuse to spend the holidays together and explore their mutual attraction. Things work out well and the story ends with them well on their way to a HEA together.
This was a very enjoyable story. I liked both Candy and Nolan and was happy they managed to work out their differences...even if I wouldn't wish for a near death experience to be the catalyst. The story is short but didn't feel lacking at all really. The story was very good overall and had great Christmas feels that left me feeling happy by the end. I'd recommend this story. :D
FYI...the story is a bit shorter than I expected as it ends at about the 76% mark on my Kindle.