Hot Ticket

I'm slowly, but surely, beginning to read again. I just finished sports-themed Hot Ticket: 4 out of 5.

Deirdre Martin's Same Rink, Next Year
Once a year, concierge Tierney O'Connor hooks up with the same hot goaltender at the hotel where she works. It's a perfectly uncomplicated arrangement--until a blizzard turns their annual one-nighter into a lost weekend steamy enough to melt the ice.

Julia London's Lucky Charm
Uninhibited radio host Kelly O'Shay loves to take on the egos of overpaid sports stars. Then she goes after hot-shot shortstop Parker Price, whose losing streak takes an unexpected turn when he goes head-to-head with his lovely nemesis--on the air and off.

Annette Blair's You Can't Steal First
Famous for his big numbers at bat, Juan Santiago's struck out only once in his life--with Quinn Murdock. Now the Red Sox star player is getting one more shot with the sexy sporting goods magnate. But first he has to prove he's not just playing the field.

Geri Buckley's Can't Catch This
Lindy Hamilton got her two-timing boyfriend right where it hurts--by stealing his pricey tickets to the Florida Moccasins football game. When she discovers that the really interesting action is in the stands, it proves to be the hottest season opener on record . . .

Lucky Charm is the first (and longest) story in the anthology, although it's listed second on the back cover. It gets the book off to a good start. I'm not usually a fan of the mouthy, tear-down talk-show host, but after Parker and Kelly's initial meeting, I enjoyed watching them spar. I've sometimes mentioned about previous stories how much I like it when a hero falls hard for the heroine. In this story, there's a nice role reversal. Yes, Parker falls for Kelly, but she falls hard too, in such a way that leads to a sweet moment at the end of the story. Lucky Charm receives 4 out of 5.

Same Rink, Next Year comes next, and I'm afraid it suffers in comparison to Lucky Charm. Where the latter is fast-paced, the former moves more slowly. While I liked Tierney and David, the set up for their story wasn't particularly believable. They spend all year looking forward to spending one night together? This didn't quite gel for me. There are some nice moments while they get to know each other: 3.5 out of 5.

You Can't Steal First ends up being the best book in the anthology--and, I admit, it's the biggest surprise to me. I didn't finish the last book I tried by Annette Blair. This story, though, I loved: 5 out of 5. When I look at the seperate elements of the story, I realize that I've seen some things before: two high-school sweethearts, cruelly parted by fate; a demanding parent; a hero who's not as much a womanizer as he's made out to be.

In this case, though, the story adds up to more than the sum of its parts. Quinn and Tiago are unforgettable characters, and as much as I liked the dialogue in Lucky Charm, I liked the banter and chemistry in You Can't Steal First even more. I just flipped through the story again to find a quote to post, but I don't want to spoil any of it. This is a very, very good story. I'm going to have to give Blair's single titles another try.

The final story in the book is Can't Catch This, and I'm afraid I can sum it up in three words: can't remember this. It's a nice enough story about a woman who meets and begins dating the cousin of a football player. The story isn't bad, but as I said, it's not especially memorable either: 3 out of 5.