PLAY THE GAME
Series: Blue Devils Hockey #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: S.J. Sylvis
Release Date: September 26, 2024
As a little girl, I dreamed of becoming many things. A twenty-five-year-old photographer struggling to make ends meet with a mountain of legal fees wasn’t one of them. Making questionable decisions wasn’t either.
After hanging up my camera, I start a job I loathe that has me questioning my morals on a daily basis.
Until I run into Chicago’s newest bad-boy goalie whose reputation is a trainwreck—???????????????????? ????????????????????.
In a desperate effort to rid my debt, I corner Emory and try to exploit him. When my plan backfires, I not only have a new enemy with steely blue eyes and a talent for the game but a man now on a mission with his own insane plan in mind.
The terms are simple: I marry Emory and act like his doting wife in front of the press to clean up his image, and he’ll pay off my debt when the job is done. But now, instead of my bills keeping me up at night, I find myself fantasizing about my fake husband and his devilish stare.
He tells me to play the game, but when lines start to blur and his touches linger, I’m not sure what’s real or fake anymore. The sizzling attraction and fiery chemistry between us can’t be contained.
Emory Olson says he never loses, and by the end of our marriage game, I’m pretty sure I’m no exception.
I think my fake wife just became my vice.
This is my favorite book from SJ Sylvis that I have read and if I can’t convince you that it needs to be on your immediate TBR, I’m not yelling at you hard enough!!
Emory Olson was a secondary character who I loved to hate in Puck Block. He was Ford’s best friend and Taytum’s extremely overprotective older brother. So overprotective in fact, that he was overbearing. And when I heard that he was getting his own book, I couldn’t wait to meet the woman that was sure to bring him to his knees.
This book takes place several years after the ending of Puck Block, with Emory now a professional hockey player and the new goalie for the Chicago Blue Devils. And if you haven’t read that other series, not to worry, because while I highly recommend it, this definitely reads as the start of a new series.
Emory is a man with a reputation and his most recent PR problem lands him being traded to Chicago. So he’s not looking for any more trouble, especially of the woman variety.
But nothing, and I mean nothing could have prepared me or Emory for the storm that was Scottie. When I tell you that I immediately loved her character, I mean I couldn’t get enough of this woman and her sassy mouth.
Scottie is a girl with big dreams but struggling to make ends meets working as a stripper. And can I just say that I loved the camaraderie that these girls had without any cattiness. So refreshing. But I digress. Scottie is as sweet as they come, but desperate times cause some drastic decisions. And the one that lands her in the crosshairs of Emory is one she instantly regrets because it’s not who she is. But then Emory sets his sights on her and has an idea that would benefit them both. She gets the money she desperately needs and he gets a fake wife to clean up his image.
And while that set up sounds pretty cliche, it was anything but. The story and the characters just brought this story to life and oh my god how I loved it. It was a delicious slow burn that was so full of chemistry, I felt my fingers singe every time I turned the page.
Emory and Scottie were incendiary together. Their banter, their connection, their everything just did it for me and I loved them so hard. This story gave me all the feels. It made me laugh, it made me swoon, and boy did it make me sweat. Obsessed is an understatement and I desperately need more in this series!
S.J. Sylvis is an Amazon top 50 and USA Today bestselling author who is best known for her new adult romances. She currently resides in Arizona with her husband, two small kiddos, and pets! She is obsessed with coffee, becomes easily attached to fictional characters, and spends most of her evenings buried in a book!
Connect with S.J. Sylvis
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