Home Game by Odette Stone

Category: New Adult Romance
Publication date: 01/29/2019
Kindle Unlimited: Yes
Cliffhanger: No

The hero alone in this one earned 3 out of 4 stars...

Plot overview: Pro hockey player Ryan meets homeless Zoey and takes care of her after she’s beaten up by street thugs. They become friends. Romance of the slow burn variety eventually develops.

I adored Ryan. ADORED him. He was one of the sweetest cinnamon roll heroes I’ve seen in a long time. He was kind, attentive to Zoey’s needs, selflessly giving, and ultra-supportive. He had some trouble communicating his feelings towards the end of the book that irked me a little, but hey, I get it. He’s a dude. I shouldn’t expect perfection from an already damn near perfect book boyfriend. 

I also loved that Ryan and Zoey weren’t immediately sexually attracted to each other. Zoey needed help and Ryan offered it. That’s it. They took the time to become friends before any sexual attraction developed. It was a lovely slow burn, and y’all know how much I enjoy a slow burn.   

Zoey was a pretty adorable heroine, too. She was smart and kind, and a little clueless about how the world worked outside of her reality. A lesser heroine might’ve seen Ryan as a gullible meal ticket, but Zoey never would’ve used him that way. She respected him too much. 

The supporting characters were pretty cool, too. They were all decent, nice guys. Even the grumpy Jensen won me over. I’d read all their stories, frankly.  

There were only a couple of things I didn’t care for, but honestly, it wasn’t enough to hurt my reading enjoyment or impact my rating that much: 

1. Bianca the assistant. I can’t stand the “hateful other woman” cliche in romance. Can’t women support each other? Bianca was a little over-the-top awful. Watching Zoey eventually stand up to her was SUPER satisfying, though. 
2. The first epilogue was really just a teaser for the next book in the series, which made me feel a little jipped as a reader.  I wanted to hear more about Ryan and Zoey’s happily ever after, not a teaser for the next story in the series. 
3. The second epilogue was just a sex scene. That’s all fine and good, but it was spicier than the book’s other sex scenes, and it seemed a little out-of-place as a result. There was nothing really wrong with it, but it had a more erotica feel to it than the rest of the book. I could’ve skipped it, frankly. 

But minor nitpicks notwithstanding, I enjoyed this one and will happily read the rest of the series. 

Does this book contribute to or help crush the romance stigma?
It’s stigma-free. No rehab needed.

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