REVIEW & GIVEAWAY: PLAYING FOR KEEPS by LISA B. KAMPS

 

Will the couple find the strength and courage to put it all on the line 

when love means playing for keeps?

 

 

PLAYING FOR KEEPS

York Bombers #3

Lisa B. Kamps

Releasing June 28th, 2017

 

 

In Playing for Keeps (York Bombers #3) by Lisa B. Kamps, Jennifer 'Jenny' Emory is looking for a fresh start after what the guy she was dating did to her. Embarrassed and humiliated beyond measure, she moves in with her brother and does her best to keep her mind off what happened. Luckily, Tyler Bowie offers the perfect distraction. Yet, the more time they spend together, the more Tyler realizes they need to tell her brother about their relationship, especially when Tyler and her brother are teammates on the ice. The question is - will Jenny's brother accept their relationship, or will he be the cause of things falling apart between them?

 

Ms. Kamps always manages to write wonderful stories that grab my undivided attention from the start and don't let go until the very end, and this story was no different due to the main characters and their back stories, especially Jenny. She's been through a lot with her last boyfriend and it's difficult for her to talk about because what he did left her embarrassed, humiliated and feeling ashamed for putting her trust in the guy she was seeing. Yet, what I really liked about the beginning is the moment the hero and heroine are introduced into this story, because Tyler finds himself getting lectured by one of his teammates as he does his best to fight his attraction to Jenny because she's off-limits.

The dialogue had me hooked from start to finish and was intense due to the reactions of those they care about when it comes to their relationship; whether they can overcome the obstacles they face such as if Tyler can handle the truth about Jenny's past and how she's ashamed of it; and the fact that this story encompasses the forbidden relationship trope. It was also intense due to the things that are happening with the secondary characters that Jenny is determined to stick her nose into, because no one should be able to get away with what is happening to a certain secondary character.

Both the main characters back stories were really interesting, especially since Tyler becomes more volatile, because of what's going on with his hockey career. Can he reign his temper in before he loses it completely and takes his anger out on someone? Then there's Jenny with what her ex did to her, which had me feeling sorry for her, because she didn't deserve such horrible treatment. Why did her ex have to be so cruel? Is it because he didn't like the fact that Jenny broke up with him? Will Jenny open up to her brother and will he be able to handle what was done to her without flying off the deep end?

Jenny is down because of what her ex did, but she's certainly not out. She's definitely strong and brave in what she's doing to start over and I liked that she wasn't afraid to stand up to her brother when he gave her a hard time. I also liked how protective she was of people that weren't willing to stand up for themselves; people like one of the secondary characters, Haley, that need a good friend on her side. While the hero, he goes through a lot in this story and I couldn't help but sympathize with his situation, especially when it comes to his hockey career and whether he can bounce back from the bad season he's having. I could also understand why he was trying to do his best to fight his feelings for Jenny, even though that seemed impossible because of the powerful chemistry they had, which eventually spilled over onto the pages in nicely-detailed sex scenes that illustrate how much these two need each other, no matter that their relationship should be forbidden.  

Overall, Ms. Kamps has penned another really good read for this series where the secondary characters have me looking forward to more of this series, especially because of what Jenny did for Haley and how she was determined to get one of the other secondary characters to help her. The way this story ended had me liking Jenny more than I already did, because there was no way she was going to continue to allow her brother and Tyler to be at odds and I liked how her surprise was the answer. I would recommend Playing for Keeps by Lisa B. Kamps, if you enjoy the forbidden relationship trope or books by authors Kelly Jamieson, Jillian Quinn, Sawyer Bennett or Toni Aleo.

 

 

BLURB

Tyler Bowie is the serious and focused goalie for the York Bombers. He has his mind on the game and his eye on the future. And he always plays by the rules--until he meets Jennifer Emory, his teammate's sister. What is it about the troubled woman that tempts him to break the biggest rule of all?

Jennifer Emory is looking to start a new life and finds the distraction she needs in Tyler Bowie, her brother's intensely sexy teammate. But the distraction quickly turns to something else. She knows all about the bro code, but there's just something about Tyler that makes her want to take a chance and risk so much more than her brother's ire.

Will the couple find the strength and courage to put it all on the line when love means playing for keeps?

But God, she hated it. Hated running away. Hated having to rely on her brother. Hated feeling like a burden.

Hated knowing that no matter where she went, one tiny little mistake could follow her forever.

She sighed and drew her knees up to her chest. It didn't matter how gorgeous Tyler Bowie was, or how much she was attracted to him, or even if she had a tiny little crush on him. She couldn't allow anything to happen. Not that he was interested but still…no, nothing would happen. He was a hockey player. He was her brother's teammate.

No—no matter how hot Tyler was, it was strictly a case of look but don't touch. She didn't think he was like her ex but she couldn't be sure because she didn't know him that well. And she couldn't trust her own judgement, not anymore. Not after what her ex had done.

Except it had been ten long months and Tyler was so gorgeous. Would it really hurt, just to sample a small taste?

And oh God, what was she thinking? No, absolutely not. She could not think like that, couldn't even afford to pretend to think like that. No matter how much—

She heard the muffled sound of footsteps against the thick carpeting and turned on the sofa, her eyes widening at the sight of Tyler shuffling up the short hall toward her. His thick hair was tousled, his lids half-lowered over dark, sleepy eyes. He paused and ran a hand over his broad chest, which caused the hem of the thin t-shirt to lift. Her mouth dried as she caught a glimpse of smooth skin pulled tight over the hard muscle of defined abs.

Smooth skin broken only by a thin line of dark hair that disappeared into the waistband of the loose gym shorts riding low on his lean hips.

Jenny blinked, her face heating as her gaze travelled down his sturdy legs, taking in the long muscles of strong thighs, lightly dusted with dark hair. Even his bare feet were sexy. Since when did she ever notice a man's feet? Since never, that's when.

She tore her gaze away, forcing herself to look anywhere else. At the generic prints scattered on the wall behind him. At the small dinette table with its two chairs and pile of mail sitting on top of a dark green placemat. At the television, its screen now dark because she had turned it off.

Anywhere except at Tyler.

Oh God, she was in so much trouble.

Look but don't touch? No, she couldn't even do that, not when the simple act of just looking made her want to do so much more.

 

Lisa B. Kamps is the author of the best-selling series The Baltimore Banners, featuring "hard-hitting, heart-melting hockey players" [USA Today], on and off the ice. Her Firehouse Fourteen series features hot and heroic firefighters who put more than their lives on the line. She's introduced a whole new team of hot hockey players who play hard and love even harder in her newest series, The York Bombers.

 

In a previous life, she worked as a firefighter with the Baltimore County Fire Department then did a very brief (and not very successful) stint at bartending in east Baltimore, and finally served as the Director of Retail Operations for a busy Civil War non-profit.

Lisa currently lives in Maryland with her husband and two sons (who are mostly sorta-kinda out of the house), one very spoiled Border Collie, two cats with major attitude, several head of cattle, and entirely too many chickens to count. When she's not busy writing or chasing animals, she's cheering loudly for her favorite hockey team, the Washington Capitals--or going through withdrawal and waiting for October to roll back around!

 

If you had a theme song, what would it be?

Honestly, it depends on my mood. But there are two that always seem to be at the top of my list:

Fight Song by Rachel Platten and…

Wait for it…

Fat Bottomed Girls by Queen!

 

Name three things on your desk right now.

• A large bag of almond M&Ms (I won't tell you how many are left in the bag)
• Large mug of coffee (strong with cream and sugar if you're really curious)
• My planner and notepad, pens and post-its (yes, that only counts as one item in my world!!)

 A la Twitter style, please describe your book in 140 characters or less.

Okay, I'm really not that great at Twitter but I'll give it a shot:

#secretpast #steamyread #bestfriendssister #forbiddenlove #nevergiveup #loveconquersall #hockeyromance #alwayshopeful

Did I go over??

What do you do when you are not writing?

Plan for the next book? Seriously, my mind is always going: thinking, dreaming, wondering, planning. Doesn't matter what I'm doing, there's always something involving writing going on in my head.

Except when I go into total slug-mode, which does happen every once in a while. If that's the case, I'm either literally doing absolutely nothing (I mean I literally turn completely OFF), or I'm either reading or playing SIMS. Hey, don't judge me J!

Is anything in your book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?

Are there certain characters you would like to go back to, or is there a theme or idea you’d love to work with?

Do you have any advice to give to aspiring writers?

The best piece of advice I can give (and have given) any aspiring writer is one that's been around for ages: Just do it. Don’t think about doing it, don’t talk about doing it, don't dream about doing it. Just sit your butt down and get those words on the page. Talking is easy, but if you're serious, stop talking and just write. You can fix it later, worry about it later, angst over it later. But you need to get those words on paper first. In this case, actions really do speak louder than words.
 

Don't get so caught up in the rules that you end up hampering your creative flow. Yes, learn the rules, be aware of them, but don't let them rule your writing (or your creative process). There are so many rules out there that "they" say can't be broken. But guess what? They get broken all the time, and it works. Do what works for you, your story, your characters. Don't let the rules silence your unique voice. (Note: I'm not talking about grammar and punctuation--those are important. It's those other pesky rules, like don't write in first person, don't write about a sports hero, etc.)

 

Is there anything that you would like to say to your readers and fans?

To my current readers and fans: THANK YOU so much for taking a chance and joining me on this wonderful journey! It really wouldn't be possible without all of you! To those readers who haven't yet read my books: don't be afraid to take a chance! You might surprise yourself and find a new favorite author (if not favorite, then hopefully one you really like!).

 

Can you tell us about your upcoming book?

My next scheduled release is PLAYING IT UP, The York Bombers Book 4.

Many of you have already met Zach and Haley in the other York Bomber titles. These two love to hate each other and are always butting heads. And when they finally get together...?

There's a fine line between love and hate, a line the mismatched pair crosses with as much passion in bed as out of it. No strings, no expectations. When Haley's past comes back to haunt her, putting her life in peril, Zach realizes that some things are worth fighting for—no matter the cost—and Haley learns she must let go of the past if she wants to hang on to the future.

This one is a steamy twist on your enemies-to-lovers story, with a few more surprises thrown in! PLAYING IT UP releases on August 30 and is available for pre-order now. You can find the link here: https://books2read.com/PlayingItUp

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