The Basic Book Bitches

Playing for Keeps (1)

This is the first installment in the Playing for Keeps series, following Carter Beckett and Olivia Parker. I found this series through an Insta ad, and it was actually an excerpt from the second book in the series that caught my attention, but I wanted to read the stories in order. I was able to read it for free on Kindle Unlimited. This is a hockey romance, but thankfully the hockey details are minimal. 

The POV alternates between our two love interests, with lots of appearances from their respective teammates and family members, some of which will have their own stories featured throughout the series. 

In the beginning, I was somewhat turned off by the dialogue between these two. It seemed slightly juvenile and a bit repetitive. (To be fair, the characters are written to be over a decade younger than myself.) I wasn’t sure I would be able to continue the series, but I was determined to finish this book. I’m not one that likes to leave things unfinished. 

I’m glad I didn’t give up on it, because I was pretty quickly drawn into the story and I’m honestly not sure if the dialogue got better as their relationship deepened, or if I just got used to it, but I was really enjoying it by about two-thirds of the way through. 

The third-act angst was a little bit contrived, but I often find that to be true when reading romance. I didn’t feel like their relationship was overly-rushed, which, if you know me, is a frequent complaint I have with contemporary romance novels. Overall, I was really pleased with this debut from Becka Mack, and I’ll definitely be continuing to read this series, because I’ve become attached to the characters. 

Stars 3/5, Spice 4/5