Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Back Check by Kelly Jamieson


The so-bad-they’re-good alphas of hockey’s Chicago Aces are back in this emotionally charged novel of sex, love, and second chances from the bestselling author of Top Shelf and the Heller Brothers series.

Tanner Bennet hates weddings. They just remind him that he simply isn’t cut out for any kind of healthy, committed relationship—never has been, never will be. After getting rejected by the girl he thought was “the one” all those years ago, he made a huge mistake and married the wrong person. Now that the divorced heartbreaker has reluctantly agreed to be a groomsman for one of his NHL teammates, the last thing he expects is a chance at redemption with the one that got away.

After Marc Dupuis of the Chicago Aces hires wedding planner Katelyn Medford, she discovers that her big break comes with a twist: a reunion with her college sweetheart. The way she dumped Tanner still haunts her. Eight years—and three broken engagements—later, Katelyn knows she’ll never have that kind of innocent, wide-eyed passion again. Still, she and Tanner soon generate enough body heat to burn up the sheets. And even with Tanner’s career with the Aces up in the air, Katelyn’s wondering whether the time is right to let him in for real.


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Book 4
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo



Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Rachael☆☆☆☆☆
I always love a second chance love story. I love the way this romance came together for the pair that had been through a lot in the past. The alternating points of view really gave a great invite to each character and why they were doing what they did. Here they both think they are pretty much done with love and relationships, only to run into the one person they simply can’t resist… the one who got away.

I loved that this story had more hockey in it. We got to really feel some of the tension that the players go through when their contracts are coming to an end and just how much this makes everything in their life messed up. Meanwhile, we are also dealing with Katelyn’s new business that is struggling to get off the ground, but with a few key contacts things start to pick up. But what will happen if Tanner gets traded? Will he leave her once again? What is she willing to do for love? What is he willing to do?

This is a great installment in this series that can be read as a standalone, but we do see the characters from the previous books.

I can’t wait for more from Kelly Jamieson!!


Mary Jo☆☆☆☆
A hockey romance and a second chance at love. Two of my favorite things.

A first love is never truly forgotten and in this case, it’s all the sweeter when Tanner comes across Katelyn again in the most unusual of circumstances. Katelyn is a wedding planner and Lovey has hired her to coordinate her wedding to Marc. Tanner has reluctantly agreed to be a groomsman for Marc even though he hates weddings.

Tanner's hate for weddings stems from his own ill-fated marriage. Looking for love and a family after leaving Katelyn behind, he chose the first woman who paid him any attention, even if the attention was more for the money he had than himself. Since divorcing, Tanner has been a firm believer in one night stands or toss away girlfriends, never letting himself get emotionally involved.

Katelyn has fared even worse since letting Tanner walk out of her life. Three failed engagements and a career change has her wondering just when will she find her Mr. Right. She fears that she let him leave a long time ago and she's destined to be alone.

The hockey aspect does not play second fiddle to Tanner and Katelyn's romance and I can't hardly wait to the next book in this series.


Lee'Anne☆☆☆☆☆
I’m really loving this series, Kelly Jamieson has done such a phenomenal job. I think this is my favorite of the series so far, I just love second-chance romances!

Tanner Bennett loved his college sweetheart, Katelyn, but when he signed with a professional hockey team she wasn’t able to go with him and they broke up. He quickly wound up married, then divorced, from a woman who only cared about money. Now he’s very leery of relationships, especially marriages. Katelyn has been engaged numerous times but always calls things off before the big day when she realizes she doesn’t love these men like she loved Tanner. Fate brings them back together when wedding planner Katelyn is hired to work the wedding of one of Tanner’s teammates – a wedding that Tanner is in.

I was hooked from page one, it has a fast-pace original storyline that I thoroughly enjoyed. The wedding that Katelyn is planning is Lovey’s so we get to see lots of the previous books’ characters, as well as a few new faces. I can’t wait to see where Kelly Jamieson takes this series next!


Sarah☆☆☆
So... I’ve reached the point in this series where the stories and characters are starting to blur together. The recipe is starting to look simple. Take one sexy alpha male hockey player under pressure. Add a clever and genuine woman who is building her own quirky and desireable business. Stir in angst filled back stories and shake together with girly cocktail time and manly bonding over beer, food, and hockey. Garnish with a little bit of sports action before serving.

This time, Katelyn and Tanner are childhood lovers who meet again when she starts planning the wedding of his good friends. Their history is complicated and Tanner is struggling with rumours that he will be traded. I liked both of these characters and I enjoyed their romance. If this were the first book in the series, I might have appreciated it more.

Aside from the women’s fantasy jobs blurring together, the tired fear of gold-digging puck bunnies is back. Jamieson doesn’t do much for the sisterhood by perpetuating the tired and misogynistic division of women into good girls (independent but sexually cautious career women who are improbably eager to settle down and raise families) and bad girls (sexually forward, materialistic creatures who prey on vulnerable wealthy men).

I think I’m also falling out with the cozy socialising in this series. The girl times and guy times in this book felt more like university sorority/fraternity bonding than actual socialising between confident adult professionals. The coupled-up parties are just a little bit smug and a tiny bit claustrophobic.

I may be looking at this too deeply. This is frothy, fun, fantasy romance. As always, the writing is solid, the angst isn’t too overwhelming, and everyone is completely likeable. But ultimately, I’ve fallen out of love with this series. I’ve read them all in a couple of months and my reaction would probably be different if I’d spread them out and if I couldn’t remember the previous stories quite as well.


Ruthie☆☆☆☆
4.5 stars of super sexy hockey player

This is the fourth book in the series – and really do recommend that you read them all, and in order. Each book features another team member, but the stories are consecutive, so you get to see snippets of the future of each couple as the next finds love. They are all well-grounded in the hockey world – and this one not only has play time, but also the issues surrounding tradeoffs and contracts ending – which added to the tension!

This is a really good second chance romance between two really likeable characters, and once we (and they) understand why things went wrong, we can only wait in the hope that things will get sorted out. There are some really fun scenes, as well as some more serious ones, and there is no doubt that the chemistry is still alive. I am reluctant to say more, as you need to read the story for yourself – but I can promise that it is well worth it. And if you love Chicago (as I do) then you will love imagining where they are in some of the scenes.

Thank you for another hit Ms. Jamieson – now I am just sad that I have to wait for the next one!


Also Available in the Aces Hockey Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our stop on the Major Misconduct Blog Tour.


Book 1.5
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Off Limits post.


Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Icing post.


Book 3
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Top Shelf post.




Kelly Jamieson is the author of more than thirty contemporary romance novels. She’s a married mother of two who lives a very ordinary life outside of her imagination. She likes coffee (black), wine (mostly white), and shoes (high!). She also loves watching hockey.

Connect with Kelly

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads


http://readloveswept.com/


Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Back Check (Aces Hockey #4) by Kelly Jamieson to read and review.

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