Out of Play by Nyrae Dawn and Jolene Perry
Penny is amazing. She is a high school hockey player - on the boy's team. While that is suitably impressive, she doesn't loose her femininity. She's still a teenage girl looking to her future and wondering what it may hold - school, sports, family......and of course boys. But being on the hockey team has made just another teammate to most of the ones she knows. She's pretty down to eartch and watching her help take care of Gramps really showed how much home and family meant to her.
Enter Bishop - rockstar drummer with a drug problem. Here to detox and get his crap together. I think the author handled his drug problem in a really great way. We got to see the denial, the partial recovery, the relapse and the affect it had on him both mentally and physically. Most people would have never guessed he had a problem. But he is a strong person with a great network of support, that now includes a hot hockey player named Penny.
But - yes the big but - she doesn't know who he is or why he's really there. It bothers the heck out of me when people hide behind lies and deciet, but I sort of got it this time - him being famous an all. There were some times that things seemed to ramble on a bit and I wondered when the story was going to get moving again. The side characters really helped make this story pop - especially Gramps - he was just amazing.
This was a great twist on the more traditional sports romance, and I love the more new adultish themes that weave their way through the young adult romance (college, family, career). Great book!
*This book was received in exchange for an honest review*
