Sunday, April 15, 2007

Anthology - Hot Ticket



In following my goals for 2007 I have been reading one anthology per month. I seem to find a draw to this type of book and so I have many in my TBR pile. My Anthology read for the month of February was a bit of a disappointment. The best of the bunch was Deidre Martin's Same Rink, Next Year and that one just got a B.

Lucky Charm by Julia London: In this story we get to know a baseball player that has been in a slump lately and he blames it on a radio talk show host who has been bashing him on the airwaves. Parker Price decides that enough is enough and decides to confront Kelly O'Shay. He heads over to her radio station and they meet, but instead of dislike they find themselves attracted to each other and start seeing each other. Parker's game improves and he thinks Kelly is his source of Good Luck. All in all the story was interesting and well rounded, which I find rare in a short story and yet it still had a rush feel to it. B-

Same Rink, Next Year by Deirdre Martin: This one was the prize of the group and lead me to pick up Martin's latest full length story Chasing Stanley (which was a disappointment). In this story a yearly tradition is broke by the arrival of a snowstorm which causes David Hewson to spend more than one passionate night with the concierge of the hotel his hockey team stays in every year. Tierney O'Connor waits with baited breath every year for the Herds (the hockey team) to arrive at her hotel. The promise of her yearly sexual encounter with the hunky Goalie, has her on tender hooks but this year the team is stranded at the hotel for several days giving the couple time to get to know each other. Although they are reluctant, at first, to break the mystery of their encounters, the promise of more to come has them exploring what could happen. B

You Can't Steal First by Annette Blair: I honestly picked up this book for Annette's story. I know Annette from my reading group and she is a very charming lady, but although her Salem Witch series was one I enjoyed, this story was difficult to get into. We met Tiago in My Favorite Witch. He was a character that begged to tell his story and although we discover that he is this sensitive, lovable person and not the womanizing, panty stealing playboy he portrays himself to be, the relationship he has with Quinn is so complex, it was not something that fit into a short story format. Quinn gave Tiago her virginity when she was just a teenager. She was the rich girl and he was from the other side of the tracks. He disappears on her, while she was thinking they had a future together. She let her father rule her life and when she is forces onto Tiago's Hot-Ticket Express to Spring Training train ride by her closest friends she finally discovers the truth behind what happened all those years ago. C

Can't Catch This by Geri Buckley: This one was the killer of th book. The casual encounter between Lindy Hamilton and Josh Weldon at a football game left me wondering what was it that drew her to him other than his good looks and for someone with such a terrible track record with her other relationships, what did Josh offer that made him different? If at the end of thebok I cannot see that chemistry, that reason for the love they declare for each other, the story has failed. The story takes place mostly at the football games and although Josh keeps saying he has fallen for Lindy, there is just no 'zing' in the encounters. This one just didn't do it for me. D-

Grade: C

1 comments:

Marg said...

I nearly bought this when it came out but I couldn't bring myself to pay the full price on a trade paperback size! So far, none of the reviews I have read have made me regret that decision.

 
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