Kick

By: Ali Dean

Narrated by: Stacey Glemboski

Length: 5 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's Summary

Buzzing anticipation. Floating weightless. Adrenaline rush. All the best feelings wrapped into an emotional high that never gets old. I think I might be addicted to falling in love. 

When rising rock star Jack Kingston comes to play on our college campus, I think he’ll be just another fix. Instead, he flips everything around and makes me question who I am, what I want, and why I do what I do. After he leaves, everything changes. 

Pushing myself in the pool, struggling to keep up with my twin sister, it’s what keeps me from losing myself entirely. Swimming isn’t my passion. It’s my source of stability. When I find the courage to finally start pushing my boundaries, I discover success in ways I never imagined, both in and out of the water. 

When Jack resurfaces, I'm forced to decide between facing my fears or letting them spiral out of control as my past catches up with me...threatening to pull me back under. It's time to sink or swim.

©2018 Ali Dean (P)2018 Ali Dean

enjoyed

I enjoyed this audible book and I already read the book but it was even better with the narration. I think the narrator was a good fit this story. I really like kick as a character because she isn't your typical female character she more like a tone boy and a bit of a player. Kick is a twin and her sister has her own book while you don't have to read the other one first it's fun to see the comparison in the stories. If you've read any other books from this author you will enjoy this one too.

This was REAL...

What started out as a story that I thought would be a typical romance, quickly turned into a story about some real issues that could easily occur on college campuses in real life. Ali has a way of addressing these issues and making you understand that some things are just not your fault even when you try to justify it to yourself. I don't want to mention details regarding specifics, but bottom line; LISTEN/READ THIS BOOK! I thoroughly enjoyed it even though evoked some tough emotions and thoughts from me. Well done, Ali!

Another great story from Ali Dean!

I have already read kick and loved it! I was excited to listen to the audio version of this book. Stacey Glemboski did not disappoint! Her performance was spot on portraying the characters emotions and struggles. Her performance made this book even better. I would give it 10 stars if I could!

Kick is a girl addicted to falling in love at least for the day. She likes the control and being in control of the situation. She likes the euphoria of meeting someone and deciding when it’s time to leave. These types of arrangements suits her just fine until she meets Jack.
Jack is in a band and is smitten with kick he wants more from kick then her normal arrangement. Jack turns her world upside down and makes her rethink what she wants. But something is holding her back, an event from her past. Will kick be able to overcome this to be able to completely fall in love?

This book can be read as a stand-alone, but I would recommend reading the first book The line Below to get some back stories on some of these characters.

Please Don't Let This Be the End

Once again Ali Dean and Stacey Glemboski hit it out of the park with this sequel, and hopefully not the end of the Spark sisters. While this book overlaps the first just a smidge, I did not feel that it was repetitive in anyway. In fact, it was great to see certain scenes from another prospective. It also gave the reader a great understanding of the timeline without shoving it in their face. Ms. Dean is a talented writer who has mastered the art of drawing a reader in and involving them in the story.
This is especially obvious since I’m not usually a big fan of sports stories.

Once again, Ms. Glemboski provided a spot-on narration for the book. I loved that she added in accents where they were called for and didn’t ignore the writer’s call.

The only negative I would have is if this is the last we see of the Spark sisters or their friends. I would imagine that there is a lot more Ms. Dean could say about these two and I would certainly love to read it.

I was provided with a free copy of this audio book for my honest review. The views expressed here are entirely my own.

College Sports Romance

Kick by Ali Dean is a college sports romance that I listened to on audio narrated by Stacey Glemboski. This is the second book in The Spark Sisters duet.

I liked the relationship that bloomed between Lydia "Kick" and Jack. They had an instant connection, but I liked that they had to work for the relationship. I also really enjoyed getting both of their points of view throughout the book. It really brought the story to life.

Stacey did a great job on the narration. I look forward to listening to more of her work in the future.

I would recommend this book if you like sports romances, college romances, or contemporary romance.


Audiobook Obsession Reviewer

Great story!

I absolutely loved this story!!! It was a fantastic read! It can be read as a standalone but it does happen after The Line Below story that is about Kick's sister. I read The Line Below first and I did enjoy reading them in order. You definitely get to see and get to know Kick in the first book. You know that there is something going on with her but not exactly what is going on until this one. I loved getting to know Kick throughout this story. It does deal with some hard topics. WARNING: Rape and all the feelings of guilt/shame and where that line is for it to be rape. I thought that it was handled very well! It's realistic I think as well for how Kick handled it and felt about it afterward. I loved getting to see Jack again. He is a great guy and I loved him. He handles Kick great for the most part. I love how direct he is. This book is fairly explicit in the sex department. I would say that this is definitely in the New Adult genre and not so much Young Adult per the sexual aspect of things. It's nothing over the top or super explicit but you do get some details of it. It didn't bother me at all, I actually enjoyed having that as part of the story. Everything blended and flowed very well so it just felt like it was meant to be there. I absolutely loved getting to see Shay and Jett again as well some of the other characters. I would love to see more in this world that Ali Dean has created! The story pulled me in from beginning to end and I wasn't quite ready to leave the Spark Sisters. Hopefully we will get to see something of them in a future story, even if it's just a type of bonus one to catch up with them and how they are doing in their relationships and swimming.
The narrator did a great job with showcasing voices and emotions to bring the story to life.

A Good Follow-Up Book

As someone who really enjoyed The Line Below, having the second story of the series being about Lydia was a good choice.

I liked that it portrayed some of the events found in the first book from Lydias perspective before jumping forward into her own storylines.

Not going to lie, I enjoyed the relationship development between Lydia and Jack. There were quite a few bumps in the road, but they were able to work through them. Nolan can go to heck, as far as I’m concerned though.

I also enjoyed that Shay and Jett and the rest of the good minor characters from the first book made appearances through out this book.

Some of the scenes with Lydia were hard to listen to but I think any kinds of scenes that deal with the aftermath of dealing with traumatic events will be hard to listen to.

The narration was good, I like the narrator.


Overall, this was a pretty good sequel/ follow up to The Line Below. I would rate this 4 out of 5 stars, because there is talking about and dealing with the aftermath of an traumatic event.

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Disclaimer: I received a free code from Audiobookcrave. All opinions are my own.

Another great sports romance

Ali Dean writes great sports romance. She writes in a way I can picture the athletes and the bands actually performing. It’s best to listen to, and Stacey does a great job in narrating both voices. I recommend this fantastic audiobook.

Completely different to book 1, but just as great.

Shay and Kick are fraternal twins and the heroine of this novel, Kick, first appears in her sister’s book, THE LINE BELOW.
I enjoyed listening to this story straight after THE LINE BELOW, as some of the scenes in both books cross over. Each book is a stand-alone, but the events in THE LINE BELOW occur first in time and so I suggest reading the books in order if you can, but it’s not essential.

I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of a great romance (2 romances if I include THE LINE BELOW) especially because the writing and narration are both excellent.

I highly recommend this duo of novels set in college and in the swimming world.

I found Ali Dean because I wanted to hear Stacey Glemboski narrate. What a lucky find.

This is so good!!

Ali Dean tackles a subject in this book that isn’t always dealt without as well as she did here. Kick (Lydia) is a swimmer in college, who has lived life in her terms.. getting what she wants with no strings and no regrets... until one night.

Jack is in a band that is in the upward track to fame and he’s had enough of no strings and is looking for more.

This is an excellent story that deals with someone who doesn’t think they are enough.. good enough, strong enough, worth enough. It takes you through happenings and thought processes and healing! It’s a great listen, and Stacey Glemboski does a wonderful job with the narration and the different characters.

I recommend this highly!!!

#AudiobookObsession

messed love

Kick is messed up. She just want to let loose, fall in love and hook up once or twice with the same guy, never committed to anyone. But when she meets Jack, a songwriter gaining fame, her whole world is shaken. Will she be able to have a real relationship or will she destroy her one chance at love and happiness? Great audiobook with a really good narrator, Stacy does an amazing work.

College Sports Romance

Kick by Ali Dean is a college sports romance that I listened to on audio narrated by Stacey Glemboski. This is the second book in The Spark Sisters duet.

I liked the relationship that bloomed between Lydia "Kick" and Jack. They had an instant connection, but I liked that they had to work for the relationship. I also really enjoyed getting both of their points of view throughout the book. It really brought the story to life.

Stacey did a great job on the narration. I look forward to listening to more of her work in the future.

I would recommend this book if you like sports romances, college romances, or contemporary romance.


Audiobook Obsession Reviewer

Ali Dean is becoming one of my favorite authors

Both Kick and The Line Below are companion books about the Spark sisters, two competitive collegiate swimmers. Although the books can be listened to in any order, I’d recommend starting with The Line Below.
“Kick” Spark is an unapologetic party girl who owns her sexuality. She has dreams for life after college- a gifted athlete and social media guru, she wants to live her life on her own terms. Kick meets a musician in an up and coming rock band. Although Kick is happy with her one-night w stands, Jack wants a real relationship.

This story perfectly captures the college experience, with some things being universal even among elite athletes. The narration is so well done, you won’t want to stop listening. Kick’s view of her lifestyle and future change when a night of drinking leads to a traumatic experience. Kick suffers greatly from that night, and has to learn to heal and forgive. Jack is her rock, and her sister Shay supports and loves her twin unconditionally.

Highly, highly recommend this series.

The ups and downs of a rock stars life

I really enjoyed this book.
Not many rockstar books show you the ground work it takes to become famous. I love the different angle that Ali has taken with this book. Great performance from Stacey.

Loved the characters & their story, fab narration

Stacey Glemboski does a really great job bringing this story to life. I enjoyed her narration and it drew me even further into the story.

You know when you just like a character from the start? This happened with Kick. I just like her and the way she is and how she grows throughout the story. Jack seems a little too good to be true, but I love the way he is with her. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I really didn't want it to end when it did!

Second in series

After reading The Line Below I was intrigued to read (or in this case listen to) Kick's story. It runs along the same sort of timeline as TLB so some parts were familiar but the story came into its own.

This one seemed more mature than TLB so it wasn't as irritating. All about Kick figuring out where she was going in her life with regard to relationships and her college/swimming. It moved along at a good pace.

Jack Kingston, rock star, was the love interest for Kick and he was rather likeable... especially when it came to the sex scenes, smoking!

The story was a sports/rock star romance crossover and it had just the right amount of each, blending into each other.

(AUDIO)
I preferred this to The Line Below, it was definitely easier to listen to - though I wasn't sure on the narrators attempt at a British (I think!) accent!

Excellent narration

I appreciate that Stacey Glemboski actually sang in her performance. I've listened to some other audiobooks where that wasn't the case, and it really helps the story come alive. I enjoyed the narration.

After listening to The Line Below, I was really interested in reading Kick's story. It would be best to read the series in order since the same characters feature prominently in both. I suspect anyone who likes The Line Below will also like Kick. Even though they're both sisters who swim, the stories are actually different.

#AudiobookObsession

Favorite by the author

Loved this story and Stacey again kicked butt with bringing the emotions of the characters to life. You are taken on a journey of growth and facing what you would rather bury. I will definitely listen to this again and recommend this to others.

#AudiobookObesessionReviewer

I love Kick!

I have listened to several Ali Dean books lately and have loved every one of them. This one was no exception. I just finished listening to The Line Below which was Shay's story so I was already familiar with the main characters. I loved Jack and Kick's story. I also loved that we got to catch up with Shay and Jett. Stacey Glemboski, as always, did a great job bringing this story to life. I'm always happy when I see she is narrating the book I'm about to listen to.

🎧AudiobookObsession

great story finding love

Kick meets Jack after a show. she is just interested in a quick hook up. he wants more. this story takes us on a journey of Kick finding herself. Jack is there waiting to love her.

loved this narrator, she did great with all the different voices.
🎧audio obsession