Sure Shot is an adult contemporary romance set in the Brooklyn Bruisers/Brooklyn series by Sarina Bowen. Each book can be read as a stand-alone (but you’ll miss out on character cameos!) and features different members of the fictional Brooklyn Bruisers NHL hockey team.  I’ve read three of the Brooklyn Bruiser books so far and knew I had to get my hands on this latest one. And you should totally check out Bowen’s website because she has her titles organized by trope!

Thank you so much Sarina for providing me with an advanced copy in return for an honest review! Sure Shot is out now!

On the eve of her thirtieth birthday, sports agent Bess Beringer is ready to make some changes. Armed with a five-year plan—indexed and color coded—she’ll tackle her personal life with the same zeal that she brings to her successful agency.

A big, tall, ripped hunk of hockey player who’s just been traded to the Brooklyn Bruisers is not a part of that plan. Mark “Tank” Tankiewicz has a lot of baggage. He’s a ride-or-die loner with a bad reputation. He’s on the rebound. He’s also the sexiest thing on two legs, and for some crazy reason it’s Bess that he wants.

She knows better. But then she falls stupid in love with him anyway. And for a while it seems like maybe he’ll do the same.

Until she asks him for the one thing he can never give her…

I really liked this book! I have yet to be disappointed by one of Bowen’s books and that’s why I’ll continue to pick them up. I had some issues with the pg language in a previous book in this series but the dialogue in this book was much more believable.

I felt like the characters in this one were super relatable.  Bess is determined and strong, and as she’s entering her 30s, she’s scared and freaking out a bit about the ticking clock many of us feel with regard to settling down and starting a family. Tank is super dreamy, not really an alphahole but definitely knows how to command – and make you WANT to obey. He’s been through some hard times and is healing during this book which made me really enjoy the parts through his POV.

So, I read a lot of romance stories and a lot of them follow a similar path where someone screws up big time and they have to grovel their way back to fix things for the happy ending. This story definitely show cases the characters having some communications issues (just freaking tell her the truth man!) but I had a lot of feelings about what was actually holding them back and it was so heart breaking because I could easily picture this being a reality for many.

I had a bit of an eye roll with how quick the timeline of events are in the books but it definitely delivers the sense of fate and destiny.  The happy ending is beyond adorable and gives you the warm fuzzies.

Recommend to fans of the second chance romance, the one who got away trope, and hockey romance.

4 stars! 

Trigger warning: infertility.