REVIEW: Risky Game by Tracy Solheim

In Risky Game (Out of Bounds #3) by Tracy Solheim, Brody Janik is hiding a secret from his teammates and his family. As tight end for the Baltimore Blaze football team, his health and performance on the field is everything. So when Shannon “Shay” Everett mentions the health issue Brody is closely monitoring on his own, he knows she’s been spying on him. Burned too many times to count by women selling information to the tabloids, he doesn’t trust Shannon at all. But he is incredibly attracted to the PhD candidate. So when Brody finds a way to use her studies to his advantage, he doesn’t hesitate to pressure Shannon into keeping his secret. Only, he ends up falling for the hard working Texan without even realizing it.

“You don’t want me, Brody,” she said softly.
“The hell I don’t!”
“No, you only think you want me because you can’t have me. You’re not used to being told no. If I’d been willing and easy, I wouldn’t be interesting. Admit it.”

Shay Everett is oh so close to getting her PhD in nutrition. She hoped to find her dream job soon, but family issues have put that aside for a while longer. Money is always scarce, so Shay has a slew of jobs she works to make ends meet. She considered getting information from the Blaze players to sell to an online gossip blog for money, but she couldn’t go through with it. Her internship is too important to lose. Then her big mouth gets her in trouble with gorgeous Brody Janik. Shay finds herself being basically blackmailed into keeping his secret, knowing that he would never physically hurt her but he could financially ruin her family. The guy born with a silver spoon in his mouth turns out to be quite an intelligent and caring person underneath the fame. But Brody’s trust issues interfere in their budding romance time and again. Will Shay be able to walk away at the end of the season with her heart intact?

“I don’t know who convinced you that you’re not beautiful, but they were wrong, Shannon. You are an incredibly desirable woman.”

Risky Game, book three in the Out of Bounds series, is a sports romance that had me laughing, frustrated, and then (finally!) satisfied by the HEA ending.

I really enjoyed Tracy Solheim’s writing style. The story flowed smoothly from scene to scene, the dialogue was interesting and snappy, and the characters were very well thought out. The bit of mystery to the plot was a nice touch as well and kept stringing me along to find out who was blabbing to the tabloids. I found it relatively easy to follow along with all of the characters even though I haven’t read the first two books in this series, which was definitely a plus. And although I’m not a huge sports fan, there was enough information about the game to explain the scenes, but not so much as to put my brain into overload.

Shay and Brody were a pretty intriguing couple. He liked to refer to her as a conundrum, but I really thought Brody was the conundrum here. Don’t get me wrong. I liked him quite a bit. Brody just caught me off-guard a few times with some of the negative comments he made toward Shay, but then he redeemed himself by being sweet and attentive. As a whole, his personality did work well with hers. Now, I loved Shay. She was highly intelligent, fiercely loyal to her family & friends, and had the strongest work ethic of any character I think I’ve ever read. And…she put Brody in his place every chance she got. lol It was fun to watch them fall in love, especially where they started off not trusting each other at all. The romance was steamy but not too over the top in details, which I thought worked for their relationship.

Overall, I think contemporary romance fans will enjoy Risky Game. Especially if you love hunky football heroes and smart & sassy Texan gals!

Book Info:

Published May 6th 2014 by Berkley |  (Out of Bounds #3)

In the next sizzling sports romance from the author of Foolish Games, Brody is at the top of his game… until Shannon changes the rules.

Baltimore Blaze tight end Brody Janik is a natural-born football star. At twenty-seven, his record-breaking athletic performance and his cover-boy good looks have turned him into a household name. But Brody’s hiding a major secret behind his charming public persona: a health condition that may cut his career short.

PhD candidate Shannon �Shay” Everett works multiple jobs to put herself through school—including an unpaid internship with the Blaze training department. Strapped for cash, Shay answers the call of an NFL gossip blogger to uncover personal details about the Blaze players. Sneaking into the locker room one night, she gets entangled in Brody’s secret…and swept up by his charm.

Brody isn’t sure what to make of the gawky girl with the whiskey eyes, especially when he discovers she was snooping. His first instinct is to turn her in as a snitch, but she could destroy him by sharing his secret. Instead, he decides to keep her close…perhaps closer than either of them originally intended…