Romancing the Kicker by Catherine Lane is a contemporary romance set in the sporting world of the National Football League. The two main characters are both hired to work for the Las Vegas High Rollers. Carly Bartlett joins the team as the only woman athletic trainer, and Parker Sherbourne is signed on as the first female kicker in the NFL. Because both women are now working in a male dominated environment, they both face resistance in the form of misogyny, discrimination, and outright hatred from some. This, plus an almost instant attraction brings the two women together. Both women are also fighting demons from their pasts, all of which creates first a friendship and later romance as the two try to find their way in this new and difficult journey.
I will admit that I had problems with this book at the beginning and really through most of the first half of the story. I believe it was mostly because I couldn’t connect with the characters to start with. They did and said things in reaction to some of the discrimination I mentioned above that I could not understand. It wasn’t until I read further into the story that I began to see what the author was doing in the story. This is a lovely romance, but there are also serious discussions about women in the workplace and the things they sometimes have to contend with. Once I realized that was part of the plot, I began to see why the characters were saying and doing what they did. I also started to really like the story.
This is a lovely romance. It is well written, and the characters are well-defined. There is obvious chemistry between the two, and the story is very interesting. I can recommend it to anyone who likes a good romance mixed with sports.
I received an ARC from Ylva Publishing for an honest review.
Rainbow Reflections 