Wicked Faerie's Tales and Reviews: Power Play by Avon Gale

Author Name: Avon Gale

Book Name: Power Play

Series: Scoring Chances

Book: Three

This book can be read as a standalone

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29361143

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Cover Artist: Aaron Anderson

Release Date: May 9, 2016

Blurb:

A freak accident during the Stanley Cup Playoffs put an end to Max Ashford’s hockey career. Despite everything, Max gets back into the game he loves—only this time, behind the bench as an assistant coach of the Spartanburg Spitfires, the worst team in the entire league. But nothing prepares him for the shock when he learns the new head coach is Misha Samarin, the man who caused Max’s accident.

After spending guilt-ridden years for his part in Max’s accident, Russian native Misha Samarin has no idea what to do when he’s confronted with Max’s presence. Max’s optimism plays havoc with Misha’s equilibrium—as does the fierce attraction that springs up between them.

Not only must they navigate Misha’s remorse and a past he’s spent a lifetime to forget, but also a sleazy GM determined to use their history as a marketing hook. But when an unwelcome visitor targets the team, Misha revisits his darkest days, which might cost him and Max the beginning they’ve worked so hard to build.

Pages or Words: 240 pages

Categories: Bisexual, Contemporary, Fiction

Excerpt:

“I’d never watched this, you know.”

“The YouTube video?” Misha had seen that too. It was filed with angry commenters yelling that he should be deported back to Russia.

“The hit.”

Misha blinked. “You’ve seen the commercial, though. Yes?”

“Yeah, I wish I could say I haven’t seen that. But I meant, I didn’t watch this until a few months ago. They played that game on the NHL channel, so I watched it.”

It never occurred to Misha that Max wouldn’t have seen it, but then he remembered that Max was the hero, not the villain of the story. Misha watched the hit play out on the screen. What must that feel like, to watch the moment it all ended? When Max hit the ice, did he know that game was his last? Did Misha know it was his? How had he felt? He couldn’t remember.

The scene switched to the replay. Misha watched dispassionately, retreated into the blinding pain of his migraine, and told himself that it was all right to suffer, that he should, that he deserved it.

Max paused the video. “Look. See what I have there?”

Misha blinked. He had not expected questions. “I—what?”

“The puck, Misha. The puck. Your hit wasn’t late.”

Oh. “Yes. I know.”

Max stared at him. On the television screen, their younger selves were suspended at the moment everything changed.

5 out of 5 stars

Power Play is the third book in Avon Gale's Scoring Chances series. This book actually could be read as a stand-alone within the series since it only briefly shows characters we'd met in the first two books. I have to say with each successive book in this series they get better and better!

What can I say about Misha and Max and their story in Power Play. Misha is utterly swoon-worthy even when he's got his stoic "Russian" face on. You know from little bits and pieces even from the start of the book that Misha is hiding a lot behind that stoicism. Until close to the end of the book, you don't know just how much his past could have absolutely changed or affected his present. Misha shares his backstory at what is a crucial part of the story for secondary character Isaac Drake. Misha is the kind of person that gives his all to those around him and takes very little for himself. That's very evident through out the entire story, and is one of the reasons I absolutely loved this character.

Max on the other hand is a roll with the flow kind of guy. Even after having his NHL career destroyed by an accident on the ice, he's able to keep going and make the best of his current situation. He's also a seriously sweet guy, sometimes he's a little clueless to the cues around him but that just makes him a more endearing character. The relationship that develops between him and Misha gives both characters focus and something to hold onto. It allows Misha to learn that he can 'take' things that are just for himself and that he doesn't need to hide any longer. Misha is also able to finally forgive himself for what happened to Max. Even though he really didn't cause Max's accident he blamed himself and allowed the NHL to punish him without standing up for himself.

I picked up the first in this series when it came out originally because I'm a huge hockey fan. Since that first book, they have become auto-buys for me. The characters are fantastic with their quirky personalities, and personal angst and issues to overcome. The pacing of the story is spot on and gives the right mix of the personal side and the hockey side of the books. I know the author is a huge hockey fan herself and I can see that in the game portions and team aspects of the book. She makes each scene come flying off the page whether it's a hot sexy times scene, or the down to the last tenth of a second puck sliding past the goalie moment.

Can I say that I'm super excited for Isaac Drake's story which is coming next? Because I totally am since he really stole the spotlight when he was on scene in this story.

I highly recommend this series regardless if you like the sport or don't because the relationships between the characters, both romantic and team centered, really drive the stories. They make what would be a really good hockey romance into a OMG I can't wait for the next one type of book. So go out and grab this series and fall in love with some sexy hockey players.

Buy the book:

DSP: http://bit.ly/1VjEEfq

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1SkBHp8

All Romance E-Books: http://bit.ly/1QmTMk9

B&N: http://bit.ly/26f0m85

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/power-play/id1109203148?mt=11

Meet the author:

Avon Gale was once the mayor on Foursquare of Jazzercise and Lollicup, which should tell you all you need to know about her as a person. She likes road trips, rock concerts, drinking Kentucky bourbon and yelling at hockey. She’s a displaced southerner living in a liberal midwestern college town, and when she’s not writing you can find her at the salon, making her clients look and feel fabulous. She never gets tired of people and their stories -- either real or the ones she makes up in her head.

Where to find the author:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/avongalewrites

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/authoravongale

Twitter: @avongalewrites

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/avongalewrites/

Join my mailing list http://eepurl.com/bGLSrD