Ramping Up by Zoe Dawson

The world of extreme sports just got a little steamier! Zoe Dawson’s pulse-pounding, emotional series follows the wily young female agents of Mavrick Allstars as they chase their dreams—and meet the chiseled athletes who make them come true.

Helena “Lena” Mavrick is ready to prove that she can play with the big boys. Working at her father’s internationally renowned agency, Mavrick Allstars, Lena sets her sights on one of the most coveted phenoms out there: a twenty-four-year-old surfer caught ripping it in a viral skateboarding video. Signing him would be a huge win—and his marketing appeal isn’t the only thing that makes Lena’s heart skip a beat. Trouble is, fraternizing with the client is against company policy.

Professional surfer Gunner Smith lives under the absolute control of his coach—until he takes the ultimate risk and starts over as a skateboarder. Gunner swore he wouldn’t give up his freedom again, but Lena’s out-of-the-blue offer makes him think long and hard. She’s smart, she’s bold, she’s got sponsors lined up around the corner—plus she’s drop-dead gorgeous. He’s just not sure his coach will let him get away that easily, because he’s not just Gunner’s coach, he’s also his father.

Gunner is used to hiding his tortured past. But when his steamy affair with Lena threatens their future, he must decide whether he will sacrifice everything for the woman who’s stolen his heart.

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Lee’Anne – ☆☆☆☆
I’m excited for this new Mavrick series; this was a fantastic start. I really enjoyed reading Ramping Up, it’s fast paced, sexy, and has a great group of interesting characters.

Gunner Smith has been pushed into being a professional surfer by his abusive father since he was a child. As an adult, he’s still letting his father run his life to protect his mother and sister, who ran away years prior when the abuse became too much. Gunner hates surfing and is mostly miserable, but skateboarding is his release. When a video of his talented skateboarding gets put online, Gunner’s career as a skateboarder begins. Helena Mavrick is a determined sports agent, and when a family friend calls and asks her to look into the video of Gunner Smith, Helena knows she’ll do anything to sign him, but when they meet the attraction is immediate. Though they begin to explore a relationship, they have to keep it hidden from everyone so that Helena doesn’t put her company in jeopardy. Add in a drunk father who won’t go away, an ex-agent who won’t take no for an answer, and a group of crazy best friends, and this makes for a pretty great read.

I think my favorite characters in this book were Helena’s two best friends. I do hope that their stories are the next books released in this series. I also really enjoy that though I don’t know a lot about skateboarding, Zoe Dawson does a fantastic job of explaining without making the reader feel like a kindergartner, which I appreciated. This can be read as a stand-alone and I love that it has a happily ever after!


Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the first in a new series, and I will definitely be on the lookout for book two! I'm a big fan of sports romances, and Ms. Dawson has done a fabulous job of bringing the world of both a sports agency and skateboarding to life. Setting a romance between a top agent, who works for her dad, and a one-time surfer, now possible skateboarder who was bullied by his dad, is inspired.

They are a delicious pair of characters, who are shaped by their past, but both open to the hopes of a future. I loved the use of parallels, of the promise of future stories, and that logic and intelligence were used to complement love and feelings. It is a feel good read, with some drama, and some cuteness that kept me turning the pages until I knew that all would work out – which is what we want, after all!

Zoe Dawson had always dreamed of becoming a full-time romance writer, and with determination, persistence, and a little luck that wish came true. Her other passions include traveling the world, owning a beach house (she believes she was a mermaid in another life), and seeing her books as movies. When she’s not writing, she’s painting or killing virtual MMORPG monsters in World of Warcraft. She lives in North Carolina with her two grown children and one small, furry gray cat.

Connect with Zoe

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Ramping Up (Mavrick Allstars #1) by Zoe Dawson to read and review.