Risky Play (Red Card #01) - Rachel van Dyken

Title: Risky Play (Red Card #01)
Author: Rachel van Dyken
Rating: 4/5

Thanks to NetGalley and Skyscape for letting me receive a digital copy of this book before its official release date.

What else can a virgin do when she’s ditched at the altar? Seattle heiress Mackenzie Dupont is treating herself to a single-girl honeymoon in Mexico and a desire to relinquish her innocence to a gorgeous one-night stand. Fake names. True pleasure. But when she wakes up alone, Mackenzie realizes just how much anger is left in her broken heart.

Suffering a tragic personal loss, pro soccer player Slade Rodriguez has his reasons for vanishing without a goodbye. Right or wrong, he’s blaming the beautiful and infuriating stranger he never wants to see again. They’re both in for a shock when Mackenzie shows up as his new personal assistant. And they both have a lot to learn about each other. Because they share more than they could possibly know, including a common enemy who’s playing his own games. And he’s not afraid to get dirty.

Now there’s only one way Mackenzie and Slade can win: to trust in each other and to stop hiding from the lies they’ve told, the secrets they’ve kept, the mistakes they’ve made, and the attraction that still burns between them.

See, writing this review is a huge problem for me right now. I’ve read Risky Play several weeks ago (months, actually). I should’ve written a review as soon as I finished it, but of course I read lots of other books since then and naturally, I don’t remember every single detail about Rachel van Dyken’s latest novel now. Which is a shame, because I remember loving it so much, even considering it as my favorite of hers. That probably isn’t the impression of whoever is reading this review, but I know I really liked this one. I’ll just try to prove it.

Mackenzie has just witnessed what no woman ever wants to – she was left by her fiancé. At the very last moment, too. Right in front of every one of her wedding guests. Trying to overcome the loss of him, who was also her best friend since they were children, she decides to get away to Mexico. What should have been her honeymoon, changes into a single trip. Soon enough, she finds herself in the arms of Slade, a soccer player transferring from an English club to Seattle. It seems like the two of them have nothing in common, but their mantra is he same – to hell with it! Being attracted to each other doesn’t hurt either and so their vacation in Mexico turns into something else entirely. And it’s all based on lies – both of them using wrong identities. Can you really trust a stranger? Obviously not since Slade takes off, making Mackenzie feel like she’s reliving a familiar situation. But what happens when Mackenzie and Slade run into each other again?

If you’ve read van Dyken’s The Bet series, some scenes may seem familiar to you. Like, Mackenzie and Slade meet on an airplane and the way they act around each other reminded me so much of the characters in The Bet. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, I just expected something new, but thinking of all these hundreds of books Rachel has written to date, I’d say it’s kind of surprising the author comes up with new ideas anyway. Really, it’s no big deal to me, but I just wanted to make sure I mentioned it.

The story held me captive from page number one. There’s just this certain vibe in all of Rachel van Dyken’s latest books, whether it’s in Fraternize or now in Risky Play, that’s rapidly becoming addictive. I can’t quite figure out what it is, but the setting, the vibes – it’s really making you dive into the story and wanting to get lost in it. You’re not just a reader with her books, you’re actually feeling whatever the characters are feeling. Rachel probably has a way with words. It must be the words.

Anyway… I’m a soccer fan, so I’m always up for any young adult and new adult books published in the US picking up that topic. I like to think that novels might help bringing some attention to that sport since it’s not the most popular one in the United States. Of course I wouldn’t like the romance to suffer just because of the author trying to tie in an underrated sport. Surely, that’s not the problem with this author, she knows what to do. You get a glimpse of what it might be like to be a soccer player, reading about the plays, the strategies and also some friend-or-foe battles going on behind the scenes, but it’s never too much. It’s just the right amount of it – a good balance.

There has to be some drama included and that’s what happens after Slade takes away Mackenzie’s virginity, leaving her alone at the hotel, flying off to his family (there’s a reason for that and if you come across other reviews, they’ll probably spoil that for you, but I choose not to). Yes, she’s a thirty year old virgin. And while I’ve read some bad reviews now, criticizing exactly that, I don’t even mind this detail. I think it’s great that the author always tries to cover up all kinds of women out there. Because there are thirty year old virgins in this world and why not pick this idea up and use it for one of her books?

So, I think you won’t want to miss out on this one if you’re fan of Rachel van Dyken. Risky Play won’t leave you disappointed. Also, no matter what community you feel like you belong to – second-chance-romance-lovers, hot-romance-lovers or heartbreak-lovers – this one includes it all.