Goose Reads 2023! (Closed)

Week 33 - For The Love Of The Game

Week Thirty-Three - August 13th - August 19th

Title: For The Love Of The Game

Author: AzulaMidnight

Genre: Romance

Number of Chapters: 26

Completed? Yes

Link (Added as an in-line comment):

Blurb:

II FEATURED II 

"What if? Just for tonight, we gave in?"

"I'm going to make sure you can never get me out of your mind after tonight."

I felt her back arch as she shivered at my words. 

We shall see if after tonight she still only wants one night, I smirked against her skin.

 ---.---

Riley Diaz is a hardworking young woman who became responsible for caring for her two younger brothers when her parents tragically got deported. After a tiring day at work, she runs into her handsome new neighbor Noah, who is looking to make a fresh start. When Riley kindly offers to help him finish moving in, neither of them expected that she would end up breaking a 15k computer. Knowing that she can't afford to pay him back she decides to strike a deal with her good looking neighbor. The deal will make her dive into a world of games that she had long forgotten.

Goose's Thoughts:

It's Week 33 and we are moving away from the darker atmosphere of the last few stories and plunging head-first into a love-at-first-sight romance!

I love how L.D. built up and created Noah and Riley's relationship throughout this story. From their first meeting, it was clear that they were destined to be together and I loved watching them grow from neighbours, to quite the adorable couple. Noah managed to fit into Riley's life so well and I especially loved watching his relationship with Riley's brothers grow throughout the story, especially with Jay who entered the over-protective, younger brother position.

Going off that, L.D. does a great job with their family relationship between Riley, Jay, and Mikey. She manages to capture the over-protective nature of being the oldest sibling and having to look after the younger brothers, but with the additional pressure in the background. I enjoyed seeing such a friendly dynamic between the three of them and seeing Riley watch after her younger siblings, especially Mikey who was adorable.

L.D.'s descriptions throughout the story are incredible. Both the physical descriptions of the world and the internal thoughts of each character are done so well. I loved seeing the inner thoughts of our two main characters and watching them grow closer through these thoughts. It all worked to bring the story together really well. 

There is also the background here of Riley dealing with her parents having been deported. It worked as quite the sad backstory, but really added to Riley's character and her lack of trust towards Noah. It also helps to solidify her over-protective nature towards her two brothers and her determination to ensure that they are well looked after. Her parents not being there just adds a while new layer to the story and a new dynamic.

If you are looking for a love-at-first-sight romance story with two complicated characters, and a heck of a lot of drama, then this story is for you. Noah and Riley make for some great main characters and it's so much fun watching their relationship grow throughout the story.

Thank you for writing such an amazing story, L.D.!

-Goose