The Risk by Elle Kennedy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

 

OMG! I FLOVED The Risk to a crazy degree. This book was everything and definitely my favorite release by Elle Kennedy since The Deal—and I’ve read them all. BRAVO!

The girl is a smoke show. Hands down, she’s one of the hottest women I’ve ever laid eyes on. And she’s got a mouth on her. The kind that needs to be silenced every now and then, maybe with another mouth pressed up to it… or a dick sliding between her red lips.

Jake is seriously attractive. His chiseled face could stop traffic. His broad, athletic body could cause a ten-car pileup. Basically, if you’re in a car and spot Jake Connelly? You’re in grave danger.

When it comes to Elle Kennedy, I miss very few of her releases, and absolutely none of her sports romances because those are my favorites. When I first read her words, the only book she’d released was The Deal. And wow, did I love that book. I would check ever few days for the next book and start all over again as soon as another Off-Campus book would release. It was torture waiting as she began writing other genres of romance—although I loved her writing still. There is just something undeniable about my love of her sports romances. So, when I saw that she was returning to Briar University in a new spin off series from the Off-Campus books, excited doesn’t even do justice to the level of bliss I experienced. I read The Chase, book one in the Briar U series and I loved it. It wasn’t my favorite of the series, but it was still a great read. Then came The Risk, and make no mistake, this is my all-time favorite book by Elle Kennedy. 

“If you want me to beg, I’ll beg. If you want me to jump through hoops, bring them on. I’ll spend every waking hour until I have to report to training camp proving to you how much you mean to me.”

Since I first met Hannah and Garrett in The Deal, I have read these books with love and yet there is something about Jake and Brenna’s book that just knocked it outta the park for me—wrong sport, but you get my drift. I literally didn’t even know where to start my review of The Risk after I finished reading. Now it’s been a couple of days and I am still chuckling and swooning over the story. I guess I will go with the obvious, this is a standalone romance within the Briar U series. You can read it without reading The Chase. That said, it is my humble opinion that the story will be enriched by reading the books in order. Jake and Brenna’s first encounter took place in The Chase. The story is a dual POV romance that will have you cracking up one minute and dang near in tears the next. Although the latter is likely unintentional on behalf of the author, but there was something about the relationship between Brenna and her father that really hit me hard repeatedly.

…I wonder how other people cope with the knowledge that their parents are ashamed of them. The weight of my father’s shame has been pressing down on my shoulders for years, and I’ve yet to find a way to deal with it.

My overall rating of the book is without question a five-star. Not only is the story written well, it’s easy to get lost in and the flow hold you locked down til you read those final words…. The End. I loved the journey I took as I followed the characters to their HEA. The Risk is an outstanding sports romance that is sure to be your next five-star read as well! Added to the fact that it’s written by Elle Kennedy and is a hockey romance (my favorite of the genre), the enemies-to-lovers trope cinched my decision to get it on my always packed blog schedule! Really, I mean, what more could a girl ask for? But it checks off so many other boxes for me as well:

Asshole hero? ✔
Sarcastic, take no shit, heroine? ✔
Hockey! ✔ (is there any other sport?!?!)
SeXXXy? ✔
Angsty? ✔
Entertaining? ✔

Although, my list could continue, I’ll stop there. Jake and Brenna’s conflict was expected as Jake’s team is a rival to Brenna’s alma matter. And that alone had the making for a good romance, but it’s really about the way the characters were written that sealed the deal and made them my favorite of Elle’s couples. They were fun together with serious chemistry. As a matter of fact, that first kiss scene?! WOW, I needed a cold shower after that! When they finally—and I do mean FINALLY—succumbed and let the sexy times happen, gah! It was five alarm fire hot! This was a delicious, albeit torturous, slow burn romance where every interaction between the protagonists just upped the anticipation.

“Damn, she smells so good. I breathe in the scent of her shampoo, sweet with a mere trace of spice. Which is funny, because Brenna is the exact opposite– spicy, with a hint of sweetness. I like the spice, though. I like it a lot…”

Brenna is beautiful, intelligent, sarcastic and a bit of a bitch. And while the bitchy side of her put me off a couple of times, I loved her as a whole—it that makes sense?! Jake had never met a woman he couldn’t get with—once—which was all he was looking for because hockey was his life. Then Brenna happened and his switch was flipped. This story moves at a great pace, so I was flipping pages as if my life depended on it. And boy was my husband was over me laughing out loud. Don’t mistake The Risk for a romantic comedy, because it’s not. But that doesn’t discount the humor associated with the secondary character, Rupi. I think that’s another area that Elle Kennedy excels at: writing secondary characters are as easy to love as the protagonists. I will say no more though on Rupi, you’ll have to read to discover more of that gem!!!😉 Instead of continuing on my list of why I loved this book, I would urge you to discover for yourself why The Risk was so outstanding.

“Want to make out some more before we go?” Jake’s tone is boyishly hopeful.
“Nope.”
His gaze turns devilish. “How about a blowjob?”
“Aw, I appreciate the offer, but I don’t have a penis.”

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