The last thing Jordan Marshall wants is a relationship, especially with someone like Taylor Becks, the star player from a rival hockey team. Taylor doesn’t talk- to anyone. When Jordan’s curiosity about the athlete overpowers her predisposition to being guarded, the two strike up an unlikely romance. In the midst of desolation left by being disowned and forbidden from seeing her little brother, Jordan finds that sometimes the biggest risks reap the greatest rewards. 

REVIEW
If you’re a Gen-Xer or Millennial who spent your teenage years in Culver City, CA, you know the hot spot on Friday night was the Culver City Ice Arena. I remember skating at the rink with friends while listening to US3’s “Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)” blaring on the speakers and chasing after one boy, or two boys, or three. I was such a teenage hussy. I met too many boyfriends (that I’m embarrassed to admit) on that block of ice. I miss those days. Except playing the “boy-crazy” part. Now, I’m just a girl-crazy fool that slips and slides on the dance floor at a gay bar. I am proof positive that grace does not come with age.

The person who recommended this book warned me that I wasn’t going to like Jordan very much during the first few chapters. She was right. If I met Jordan in real life, I’d run for the hills. She comes with enough red flags to open her own damn airport. I think that many of us, casually (if you know what I mean) have encountered this type. They flit in and out of your life, and you hardly get more than a 2-second glance before they disappear for good. It’s never enough time to get to know who they really are, and they prefer it that way.

But we don’t always realize is that everyone is carrying their own baggage. If we’re fortunate enough and we take a chance, we find someone who will help shoulder our burden. Most of the time, we’re just floundering aimlessly, carrying our load like a high school student who stuffs six classes worth of books in a Jansport backpack because they’re too lazy to use a locker.

Unfortunately, some of us believe that we don’t deserve to be happy and when we’re finally at a place where we are, we ruin it rather than believe it’s true. We “wait for the other shoe to drop”, so to speak. This is the place where Jordan resides. She comes with some pretty heavy baggage, and life has dealt her a pretty shitty hand of cards. It’s the same with Taylor but different circumstances. Without giving too much away, they both deal with significant loss in their lives, and how they recover from that loss and move forward together is what makes this a beautiful story to read. Jordan and Taylor take a chance, but more importantly, they believe in each other and in the capacity to heal and change for the better.

Needless to say, I grew rather fond of Jordan. She has a bigger heart than I thought she did at the beginning of the novel. I would say that this genre hovers in the space between YA and adult fiction. Fans of both genres will be entertained!

SOUNDTRACK
1. Bruno Mars – Treasure
2. Smallpools – Dreaming
3. Allen Stone – Say So
4. US3 – Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)
5. Capital Cities – Safe and Sound
6. Haim – The Wire
7. Gotye – In Your Light
8. Tei Shi – Go Slow
9. Beyonce – Love on Top
10. Made in Heights – Ghosts
11. Ghosttown DJs – My Boo
12. Kaptan – Anywhere We Go

CHEERS!
This book would be best read with a hot chocolate.