This is the first book in a new series about the Vancouver Vice, an AHL hockey team that suffers from an image problem and has a host of other things to deal with, including being the last placed team in the league. Their coach is a jerk, their owner is hands off, and their players are a mix of good and not so good guys. But this story that deals with the tryouts for the team features one of the good ones (best to start with a hero, after all). Eric is a player who used to have it all, then squandered his chances at making the NHL after a drunk driving accident he was responsible for resulted in a lot of other issues and him getting kicked off his team at the time. Finally coming to grips with the problems in his life, he's made a turnaround, spending a year playing in Switzerland, getting his mind and body back into the right mode needed to realize his dreams. At the start of the story he's been given a last chance ticket to attend the tryouts for the Vancouver Vice and is at an expensive training camp with six weeks to get into peak physical form. While there, he meets a rather mysterious woman at a bar one night, one he just can't get out of his head. The pursuit is on, eventually resulting in Eric and Josie becoming lovers and friends (in that order). But Eric has a lot on his plate, and a relationship with a new woman may or may not help him in his quest to better his chances at moving up the hockey ladder. With a lousy coach, the demons of his past, and a new relationship, can Eric find the right path to realize his dreams?
What a fascinating story! It's a hockey romance, sure, but it's a lot more than that, as we go with Eric on his path of self discovery. I really enjoyed how the book started, the training camp that Eric attended and its focus on mind and body - a great reminder that the psychology of sport is as important as its physicality. The story is told entirely from Eric's point of view, so we know his past, his present and what he hopes to achieve in the future. Eric himself is in a good place now, both mentally and physically. He's a practitioner of yoga and meditation. He works himself hard physically to keep in shape. He's acknowledged the mistakes of his past and faces up to them in a mature and honest manner. As a result of his driving under the influence charge, he has a breathalyzer installed in his car, a device he must blow into that records the percentage of alcohol before he is able to drive (and obviously would lock him out if he was over the limit). It's a sobering reminder for him daily of the chances he used to take and the responsibilities he has to himself and his teammates. As the story progresses, Eric has decisions to make and conflicts to resolve. It was refreshing to see him deal with everything in a mature manner. I just really liked him as a character.
The romance part of the story was a little bit different than any I'd read before, mostly because Josie's character remains an enigma through much of the story. She comes across as a very contained woman, not expressive emotionally. The first few times that she and Eric meet, you get the feeling that she really doesn't care much whether or not she and Eric will ever be in a relationship. Though it's obvious that this is something Eric wants, Josie is much more closed off and doesn't share her feelings with him. This doesn't stop them from having some super steamy scenes together though, and while the sex between them is definitely hot, it's not until later in the story that you get more of a sense that Josie cares for Eric, in her actions more than in her words. She's definitely a positive presence in his life though, a good listener for him and a woman who asks him the questions that no one else does. Josie's got some secrets too, ones we don't find out about until later on. There are some things that happen in the story, interesting twists and turns that I didn't see coming and that definitely made this a real page turner for me. I really wanted to know what would happen, not just with Eric and Josie but also with Eric's hockey career. We get a good happy for now ending (appropriate for Eric's age at 23, and the fact this reads as a new adult story) and I'm definitely interested in reading more of this series! 4.5 stars.
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