carolesrandomlife

This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life.

I received an advanced reader edition of this book from the author for the purpose of providing an honest review.

4 Stars!

I loved this sweet story! I have read a lot of sports romance and have found that the focus is almost always on the romance with just a glimpse of the sport. That is not the case with this novel. This is a true sports story with the sport being just as important as the romance. I love baseball so this story really appealed to me.

Heather is a softball coach after having been a great player herself. When she gets the call that her dad has had a heart attack, she rushes to his side. Soon she finds out that her father is planning to sell his struggling minor league baseball team and she fights to get a chance to manage the team and turn things around. Nothing Heather does ever seems to be good enough for her father but he eventually agrees to the plan.

Garrett is a recovering alcoholic who is trying one last time to fulfill his dreams of making it to the big leagues. When he finds out that his team will now have the first female manager, he is ready to find another team. He soon recognizes that Heather has what it takes to lead this team and gives the team his all.

There is a lot of chemistry between Garrett and Heather from the very beginning but there are also a lot of reasons they should not act on it. When Heather becomes the manager of the Falcons, she also becomes his boss so a relationship is not the best idea. An even bigger problem is that Heather does not feel that she can ever trust anyone who has ever been an addict because she watched her mother relapse too many times when she was younger.

The fact that this book is part of the Harlequin Heartwarming line is perfect! It is most definitely a heartwarming story. Garrett and Heather both have a lot of issues from their past to overcome and watching them do that in this story was wonderful. This story is wonderfully written and the character's emotions really feel authentic. I would definitely recommend this book to others. Baseball fans should find this story particularly appealing. This is the first book by Karen Rock that I have had the chance to read and I plan to look for others in the future.