Reading Between the Wines Book Club

If you are a fan of sexy sports romances then Toni Aleo's Assassins series is a must read for you. The series just gets better and better with each new release!

Jordan Ryan's life as the Nashville Assasins all-star goalie was turned upside when he suffered a knee injury and was put on the disabled list. Now healed and ready to get back on the ice Jordan finds himself sitting on the sidelines as the team's new rookie wows the fans and the coaches. Frustrated and struggling with his new back-up position and the insecurities that have developed because of it, Jordan makes the difficult decision to look for a starting position elsewhere. On a flight back from meeting with another team, Jordan is seated next to a beautiful woman. If he had sat next to her before his injury he's sure he could of wooed her into a spending the night with him. But with an unknown future and his new anxiety Jordan walks away from her at the end of the flight.
Aynslee Shaw can't believe her luck when she is seated next to a sexy stranger on her flight back home after a disastrous day. She thinks they have a connection but then he walks away without asking for her phone number, email address, anything! Aynslee can't stop thinking about him but resides herself to never seeing Jordan again.
But Fate has other plans for them. After several chance encounters Jordan finally gives in and decides to see where a relationship with Aynslee will go. But Jordan is afraid that he'll end up hurting Aynslee in the end, when he ends up having to leave her and move for a new team. Can they enjoy the present with a future apart hanging over them? Or will their budding feelings supersede time?

The one thing that I noticed about Falling for the Backup right away was how likable the main characters were. They were so real and genuine I couldn't help but fall into their story. Aynslee is a heroine to love. She knows what she wants and goes for it. She stays true to herself and doesn't have any of the character flaws that a lot of heroines now-a-days fall into. Lack of self-esteem, chip on her shoulder, or other insecurities. She's just a real woman with real emotions. She's funny and honest. Jordan was a joy to read about as well. In the story he is going through what any athlete could go through at any time, an injury when you're a professional athlete is a scary thing. It could destroy your career and forever change your future. His anxiety over where life was taking him was relateable even though I am not, and have never been, an athlete of any kind. But not only that, he was incredibly sweet and oh-so-sexy. The building of their relationship and the hurdles they maneuver was absolutely heart warming.
Don't let the novella length of this book put you off either. It is a full and satisfying story that felt longer then it's 100 pages. Toni Aleo's love of hockey exudes from every page. This novella is a great little story to try out if you are unsure of starting the series from the beginning. It is told well as a stand alone. But it is also the perfect short and sexy fix for fans of the series until Blue Lines releases! A definite recommended read in my opinion for contemporary and sports romance fans.