The Score
Series: Off-Campus #3
Genre: New Adult Romance
Author: Elle Kennedy
Release Date: January 11, 2016
He knows how to score, on and off the ice
Allie Hayes is in crisis mode. With graduation looming, she still doesn’t have the first clue about what she’s going to do after college. To make matters worse, she’s nursing a broken heart thanks to the end of her longtime relationship. Wild rebound sex is definitely not the solution to her problems, but gorgeous hockey star Dean Di-Laurentis is impossible to resist. Just once, though, because even if her future is uncertain, it sure as heck won’t include the king of one-night stands.
It’ll take more than flashy moves to win her over
Dean always gets what he wants. Girls, grades, girls, recognition, girls…he’s a ladies man, all right, and he’s yet to meet a woman who’s immune to his charms. Until Allie. For one night, the feisty blonde rocked his entire world—and now she wants to be friends? Nope. It’s not over until he says it’s over. Dean is in full-on pursuit, but when life-rocking changes strike, he starts to wonder if maybe it’s time to stop focusing on scoring…and shoot for love.
I kiss him back hungrily, helpless to resist him. Dean Di Laurentis is in my blood now. I didn’t expect this intense sexual chemistry between us, but it’s here, and it’s addictive, and I don’t know how I can ever give it up.
You know when you read the first book in a series and you love it so much that you don’t think anything can top it, but then you read the second and you love it just as much? So then you know that the chances of that continue to hold for the 3rd book are slim, right? In my experience, it’s tough to keep that sort of momentum going…unless, of course, you’re Elle Kennedy. Because not only was The Score absolutely fantastic, but it turned out to be my favorite in the series. And considering how much I loved the previous two books, that’s saying something.
Now let’s be real here; considering how much I love me my manwhores, it was already a good chance I’d love Dean Di Laurentis. Even the man’s name is hot, for goodness sake. Between his self assured ways, cocky attitude, humor, and manwhoring tendencies, I couldn’t get enough of him.
What I love about Elle’s writing, is the depth that she gives her characters. And Dean certainly was no exception. He may be the hard partying manwhore with a crass sense of humor, but beneath that perfect exterior there’s so much more to him and you really get to see it blossom here.
Allie Hayes is Hanna’s best friend that just recently broke up with her long term boyfriend of 3 years. In fear of giving in when he comes calling again, Allie seeks an escape at Garrett’s place. She knows all about Dean and his one and done ways and he may be hot but he’s not for her. She’s a nester. She has relationships not one night stands. But then a broken heart and some tequila lead to one of the hottest hookups of her life with none other than the sexy manwhore. She’s determined to keep it in just friends zone after but Dean is determined to change her mind.
“Fine. How about we go down on each other instead?”
“How about you leave?”
“Counter offer- I stay and we dry hump.”
The Score is this amazing combination of witty humor and endearing characters. While I loved the slow building romance between Dean and Allie, what kept me turning the pages was the banter between them and the rest of the guys. The Twilight references alone had me laughing like a loon. It was witty and crass, and wildly entertaining. Dean and Allie together was the perfect examples of opposites attracting and I absolutely loved them together. Their banter and chemistry was utterly delicious.
“Oh yes, they do…
See, if you take away my dick privileges, I’ll be fine for moths. Years, even. But if I take away your pussy privileges? You’ll be utterly lost. Like a drowning man at sea, desperately grabbing for the vagina preserver. Therefore, vagina trumps penis.”
I loved how Miss Kennedy pulled off an incredibly sexy romance while keeping it realistically slow paced. These two may burn up the sheets together, but the feelings came with time and I for one loved watching those develop for both of them.
This isn’t just a story of the manwhore meeting his match and inevitably succumbing to his feelings for her; it’s so much more. The story had wit and humor and so much depth to it, too. There’s something that happens towards the end that caught me completely off guard. I never in a million years expected something like that to happen and yet as much as it broke my heart, I can’t help but to admit it did the job of driving the plot where it needed to go.
Without a doubt, Elle Kennedy is a force to be reckoned with. The woman can write the hell out of a book. Dean and Allie’s story was funny, sexy, swoony, emotional and wildly entertaining. It was everything I love about romance and exactly why I read New Adult. THIS is how it needs to be done. I can’t wait to see what the next book brings, because after that little peak we got? Oh yeah! It’s about to get real.
★DON’T MISS THE REST OF THE SERIES★
THE DEAL (on sale for $.99) | THE MISTAKE (on sale for $1.99)
I’m not a reader that has many hard limits in books, but damn if this didn’t take me out of my comfort zone in the best way possible. Evocative and unpredictable, Break Even crossed many lines, but written in the flawless and gripping way it is; it just worked. See I’m one of those rare readers that doesn’t mind cheating in books so long as I feel that it fits the story. I’m not saying that I condone it, but I don’t see romance in black in white with books. I can appreciate that fictional characters, much like real people are not perfect and mistakes happen. If the author can endear me to the MCs, I can look past a lot; cheating, love triangles. So long as I have a connection to the characters and I understand the why’s of their behavior, I can overlook their imperfections. To be frank, that’s the best part of reading for me; for something to take me out of my comfort zone and make me think. I don’t want perfect characters and idealistic situations. I want them real. I like the grittiness of imperfection. With that being said, I can see that this book won’t be for everyone. But if you decide to venture out of your comfort zone I can also tell you that you will not regret it.
Break Even is the story of a woman that’s torn. A woman that loves her husband but has also felt herself drift apart from him though the years. Marley is a strong, independent and professional woman, but she’s not perfect by any means. In a vulnerable point of her life she meets a man that changes everything…
This was my first book by this author and I can certainly tell that it will not be my last. This book was exactly the sort of different I was looking for. It took me out of my comfort zone and kept me reading well into the night. I loved every word of it. It’s not black and white. It’s firmly rooted in that gray area. But the fact that Lisa De Jong truly made the reader connect with the heroine made it work.
Sometimes you read a book that touches you on an emotional level. It’s a book that burrows into your very heart and grabs hold. A book that’s different yet unforgettable. A book that touches on a deeply emotional and dark subject and yet gives you the light at the end of the tunnel for it. THIS, this was that book for me. I think this may easily be one of my favorite books I’ve read by this author to date. It was beautiful, poignant, and perfectly written. This could not have been an easy book for Monica Murphy to write, and yet she pulled it off flawlessly.
I’m a huge fan of Shayla Black and Lexi Blake individually, but when these two combine their talents into a series? Fire. Works. This just may be my favorite series by them yet. And having read their entire backlists individually and combined, that’s no light statement. Espionage, action, suspense, and a romance so hot it burns up the pages, all woven intricately together to make up one incredible page-turner!
I was a little afraid at first that Lara would get on my nerves. She’s not exactly the kind of heroine I prefer to read about; a vegan that even attempts to put her dog on a diet. She’s idealistic and at times naive and some of the things that come out of her mouth left me somewhere between laughter and ‘did she really say that’?
A few years ago I discovered this author when I first read 
Dante Damaso is rich and successful beyond his wildest dreams, and he works his ass off to stay that way. He’s not interested in lasting relationships. Seeing his father work his way through countless wives has put him off relationships indefinitely. But he’s certainly not one to abstain. He loves a sweaty night between the sheets with a beautiful woman…so long as it’s just that night. And he makes himself very clear in that respect. When a trip to Tokyo stirs his attraction to his assistant, he sees no reason to abstain either. But he makes it very clear to her what it is and what it isn’t. After all, he’s not about permanence, particularly with a woman that he believes used his connection to her brother to get a job without being even a little qualified.
After the delicious smut fest that was 
But I suppose I’ll hold off final judgement till we see how everything gets resolved in the last book.
It’s been a long time that I read a book that effected me on such a visceral level. I had honest to god tingles while reading this. My heart was beating out of my chest, my head was spinning, and I was completely and utterly incapable of putting it down for even a second. It’s also been a long time that I read a hero that was so alpha he practically crackled with electric magnetism through the pages. This book hit every single one of my yes spots. It’s exactly the kind of thrill I love in my romance. It was unpredictable, erotic, a little taboo, undeniably captivating and absolutely spell-binding. It’s also almost impossible to review without giving anything away, so excuse my attempt at trying…
The sexual aspect of the romance may take many out of their comfort zones, so if you’re not a reader that’s comfortable with that, this book may not be for you. It has a touch of BDSM and yet…not quite. There’s no clear lines, and that may not work for some. Emily is a multi-faceted character and her desires are not quite…standard. But that’s what truly works because you can see exactly what draws these characters together.
Then Laurelin hits you with the mother of all cliffhangers but I swear it just made the book all that much better. Does that even make sense? Ugh. I don’t even care because it does to me. The wait for the second book just may kill me, but I don’t regret it for even a second. This book was nothing that I expected and yet everything that I love. If you’re looking for something spellbinding and different, this is a must read. First touch is part one in a duet.
