“I don’t know when you went from the girl I adored to the woman I can’t stop thinking about, but you did. You’ve always been in my heart, but now you’re in my head too. You’re fucking everywhere, Lila. You’re in so deep that I don’t see how I could ever get you out.”
The Game Changer is a real banger.
When a very public breakup becomes a PR nightmare for Ian Chase’s team, he hopes to focus on his game, but that suddenly seem less likely than a hat trick. With his career and the team’s image in jeopardy, Ian is surprised to find a solution through none other than Delilah Baker, his best friend and teammate’s little sister…who isn’t so little anymore.
Delilah Baker is known as “the darling of baking” on her local cable show, and being in the public eye is her bread and butter. But with her numbers dwindling and her producers turning up the heat, Delilah offers up the half-baked idea to collaborate with her brother’s team to entice the hockey fans of Boston to tune in to her show. Delilah thinks it will be a piece of cake—until the team sends Ian Chase, her brother’s best friend and the object of a decade-long crush that she’s never quite gotten over.
Delilah’s and Ian’s teams think it’s a true win-win situation—gaining higher numbers for Delilah’s show and casting Ian in a more positive light. And viewers are eating them up like a cupcake, sparking the idea to play up their relationship for the goal of good press. With more than just their careers on thin ice, the line between what’s real and what’s for show begins to blur, but one thing’s for certain: This PR stunt will either be a total game changer—or leave them both totally pucked.
Kayleigh has been raving about how much she loved The Nanny by Lana Ferguson, so when I saw that Lana had a new book coming out and that the MCs were a hockey player and baker, I knew I needed to get my hands on it. I loved everything about this book. It’s fun, spicy, and has just the right amount of angst and pining.
Let’s talk about the story first; the pacing of this book is great, it’s fast, and there is a lot going on to keep readers entertained. Lana also brings two fabulous worlds together: baking and hockey. The food talk was delicious, and I loved the banter among the hockey players. It was a lot of fun switching between these two worlds and also seeing how Lana brings these worlds together in a fun and interesting way. There is also this bit of mystery or unknown element woven throughout the first bit of the book. From the start, there is more to the story of what happened during this drama-filled event that eventually caused Ian to leave for six years. We know the press thinks Ian cheated on his now ex-wife, but as a reader, I knew that wasn’t the case. It didn’t take me long to figure out what was really going on, but I still appreciated the added drama this situation added to the story. For those who hate a third-act breakup, you’ll be happy to know that this book doesn’t have one. The final conflict in this story isn’t between Delilah and Ian, but something that happens outside their relationship, and these two stand by each other and support one another during those troubled times.
Lana really knows how to write a likeable character. I have to talk about a few of the secondary characters first. We all need Jack (Delilah’s brother), Mei (Ian’s ex-wife), and Bella (Mei’s wife) in our lives. These three characters were off-the-charts hilarious. The banter was so much fun. You never knew what kind of things would come out of their mouths. I was smiling and laughing every time they were on the page. Despite all their crazy antics, these three characters also were steadfast friends and truly cared about the MCs. Delilah is a sweet, cheerful firecracker. I loved her character instantly. I think anyone who has had a major crush on someone will connect with how she fell head over heels in love with Ian when she was a teenager and pined over the guy for years. She falls fast and hard for Ian. There was definitely some cheering on my part when Ian finally realized Delilah’s feelings and that he felt the same. Ian was this slightly broody, gruff hockey guy who seemed to be missing his zest for life. These, shall we say, darker, more guarded emotions come from what happened six years ago. The press accused Ian of cheating on his wife and the negative media attention got so bad he accepted a trade to play on the Calgary hockey team. At the beginning of the book, he returns to Boston with the hopes of playing the remaining years of his hockey career for his hometown team. However, the media can be ruthless, and negative attention quickly returns. My heart really went out to Ian. He is a good guy at heart, and without giving away any spoilers the pickle that he found/finds himself in is not his fault. I loved watching as Delilah’s love and unwavering trust in Ian brought him back to life in a sense.
If you are new to Lana’s books, you should know that she writes very SPICY romances. That’s why I said this book is a real banger, because there is lots of banging going on in lots of different places. The spice is hot, and the dirty talk is bound to get your heart racing. For those who like forced proximity, falling for a brother’s best friend, slight workplace, childhood friends, secret relationships, and fake relationship trope-y romances, then this book is going to be right up your alley. Yes, there is lots of sex, but there are also lots of quieter moments between these two where they talk and get to know each other on a deeper emotional level. They both have also had this steadfast presence in each other’s lives (with the exception of the six years Ian was in Calgary). The chemistry between these two was off the charts, and I devoured every scene that they were together. I swooned at the nicknames they had for each other.
The Game Changer has sensuality, banter, wit, and romance in spades, and I promise you will not be able to put it down once you start reading it.
Thank you, Berkley Publishing Group, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
