Pipe Dreams

By: Sarina Bowen

Narrated by: Nicol Zanzarella, Rock Engle

A goalie has to trust his instincts, even when taking a shot to the heart.

Mike Beacon is a champion at defending the net, but off the ice he's not so lucky. A widower and a single father, he's never forgotten Lauren Williams, the ex who gave him the best year of his life. When Lauren reappears in the Bruisers office during the playoffs, Beacon sees his chance to make things right.

Lauren hates that she's forced to travel with the team she used to work for and the man who broke her heart. There's still undeniable sexual tension running between her and Mike, but she won't go down that road again. She's focused on her plans for the future - she doesn't need a man to make her dreams of motherhood come true.

Lauren plays her best defensive game, but she's no match for the dark-eyed goalie. When the field of play moves to Florida, things heat up on the beach.

One of Mike's biggest fans - his teenage daughter - doesn't approve. But a true competitor knows not to waste the perfect shot at love.

©2017 Sarina Bowen (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Score

I love this series. It’s fun it’s thoughtful it’s romantic and it shows big strapping men as sensitive caring individuals. Show strong women shows dynamics between children born from other marriages etc. I like it because it’s late and because it’s fun. This whole series has been really entertaining. The performance is also very good so overall I’d give it five stars

Last line made me LOL

Aside from the thinking that Lauren’s close personal billionaire friend should have flown Mike home at a crucial moment, I enjoyed the book. The teen drama was handled well. The bit where Mike called out a player for using a slur was a bright spot.

I found it a little hard to follow the timeline at the start because I didn’t pay close attention to the dates (years) starting out the early chapters, so beware you need to do that. My interest waned briefly mid-book but I forget why. In general, I enjoyed all the (nicer) secondary characters (aka not her dad) and how they supported the couple. It’s a solid read.

Steam. Low but on page for a couple scenes

Audio: these narrators continue to do justice to the stories & the quality remains solid.

A good second chance.

I have been listening my way through the Brooklyn Bruisers and really enjoying them. The writing is great, and the connections between the teammates, staff, and significant others gets me excited for each and every new book. While I always liked Mike, I am impressed with how Ms. Bowen was able to get me to fall so completely for Lauren.

Lauren is supposed to be the ice queen. She is all business, and avoids the hockey side of things completely. However, Ms. Bowen does such an amazing job of showing why Lauren is this way and that there is so much more to her. I fell hard for Lauren, and my heart hurt for everything she had been through. I wanted things to work out, because she deserved her happy ending. I loved watching her develop friendships with the other girls and really find the life she deserved all along.

Second chance stories are some of my absolute favorites, but I'm also probably most critical of them. I can be a total grudge holder, so I need massive character development to believe it is really going to work the second time around. This story did a good job of that, but I would've liked just a little bit more. I felt like Lauren deserved a bit more in the way of apologies from Mike. I get that he was ready to move on and start again, but I still held a tiny grudge against him. That said, I was still cheering them on, and so happy for their HEA. I was convinced it would work this time.

This narration was really well done. The emotions came through, and I really enjoyed listening. I won't hesitate to grab more books by these narrators.

WONDERFUL

I love this book. A great series so far, lots of laughter and tears!!

Sexy story

I loved these characters! Another second chance romance in this series & you really feel for them. I learned so much about hockey from this book. I love this series!