New Release Review: Settling the Score – The Summer Games by R.S. Grey
We featured Settling the Score last week on release day & I am happy to announce that I read this one in less than 2 days (could have been shorter if I didn’t have life responsibilities!) & I’m excited to review this book! I barely get excited about writing reviews anymore…they always feel like I am saying the same thing over and over, but you know what? I loved this book through and through – it is really funny, sexy, and worth the read! Check out my spoiler-free review below! Hope you like it as much as I did!
Settling the Score (The Summer Games #1) by R.S. Grey
Category: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Publication: May 3rd, 2016
Purchase: Amazon
From the USA TODAY Bestselling author of Scoring Wilder, comes a sexy new standalone novel.
As an Olympic rookie, Andie Foster has spent far more time in her cleats than between the sheets. For 21 years, her Friday nights have consisted of blocking shots rather than taking them. But now that she’s landed in Rio, she’s ready to see for herself if the rumors about the Olympic Village are true:
• The athletes are all sex-crazed maniacs…
• The committee passes out condoms like candy…
• The games continue long after the medals have been handed out…
As Andie walks the line between rumor and reality, she’s forced into the path of Frederick Archibald, a decorated Olympic swimmer and owner of a sexy British accent–too bad he’s unavailable in a way that “it’s complicated” doesn’t even begin to explain.In other words: off limits.
It doesn’t matter that he has abs that could bring peace to the Middle East and a smile that makes even the Queen blush; Andie fully intends on keeping her focus on the soccer field. But the Village is small. Suffocating. Everywhere Andie goes, Freddie happens to be there–shirtless, wet from the pool, and determined to show her a whole new meaning of the phrase “international affairs”.
Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is not intended for readers under the age of 18.
Spoiler-Free Review:
[book rating=4.5/5]“The water was soothing, but Andie lit me on fire.”
What can I say other than I really love sports romances & I clearly need to read a lot more of them! I absolutely devoured Settling the Score! I almost wish I had time to just read it again, it was so much fun! I was laughing and rolling throughout this entire read – my abs got a workout just from laughing so much. I am also unabashedly a huge fan of the Olympics. I barely keep track of sports outside of my city’s professional teams, but when the Olympics come around, I end up eating up each and every morsel they feed me! I watch and DVR as much of the games as possible, so reading a fictional book set in the very real upcoming locale of the 2016 Summer Olympics made this book even that much more endearing! Andie Foster, the goal keeper for the US Woman’s National Soccer Team, wanted to be swept up in the magic of Rio and therefore ultimately as a reader, I was swept away too!
Andie Foster was an amazing character. She had such fierce independence and still was able to show us her vulnerable side without hindering her personality. Freddie Archibald was delicious. That’s all you need to know…OK, he’s a British swimmer, this is his third Olympic Games, and very delicious. Better? Seriously, the first moment Andie lays eyes on Freddie may be my favorite moment of the book, or perhaps it is her first one-on-one encounter with Freddie, or maybe it was their first kiss, or, OK all of it was my favorite! However, my biggest peeve about the book, is how could Andie, not know about this extremely decorated & sexy AF, Olympian before the games?! I loved every wink, every stare, every ache, and every painful muscle these two endure.
As much as I loved the main characters, the secondary characters really shined! Of course if you are a reader of R.S. Grey, you might recognize some of the girls, specifically, Kinsley & Becca (as well as Liam), from their previous quest to get to the Olympics, but you will not feel lost or like you are missing out in this book. They were integral and added a lot of the comic relief. They absolutely brought experience and insight to Andie as well as caring support. But it is the new characters that I fell in love with! Especially, Georgie! Damn that girl was a force to reckon with! I sure hope Ms. Grey has some plot bunnies planned for that spitfire!
This book technically was very instalovey, and I didn’t hate it! HA! That almost never happens. However, the fast blooming lusty attraction, was well played out and they didn’t jump each others bones immediately, so maybe that is why I really enjoyed it! However, if I had to wait another page for them to finally give in and ‘get it on,’ I might have loathed it. These two were so perfect for each other. I literally felt like they were meant to fall in love because the steam of their near proximity had me swooning. I will say that although I loved the plot, I did think the drama, even if necessary, might have been a tad over-the-top, but all in all I enjoyed this book very much! I just flew through this book and then started to try and savor it as it was coming to an end. Speaking of endings, the epilogue was pure perfection.
This is a stand alone novel and can be read without having read any previous title by Grey, and I highly recommend you dive into this one as it is so much fun! 4.5 stars…the only thing standing in the way of a perfect score was that I felt it was a bit over dramatic. Beautiful characters, beautiful setting, and a perfect HEA!
