{ARC Review} GARRETT by Sawyer Bennett

Title: Garrette

Series: Cold Fury Hockey #2

Author: Sawyer Bennett

Published: 17th February 2015

Age Group: Adult

Genre: Contemporary Roamnce

Source: eARC provided by publisher via Netgalley for fair & honest review

Rating: 5/5

Goodreads | Amazon

BLURB:

Carolina Cold Fury star Garrett Samuelson never wants to miss out on a single minute of fun. Whether he’s playing hockey, hanging out with friends, or walking the red carpet with a new date on his arm, he lives every day to the fullest. When he meets Olivia Case, he sees someone who’s exactly his type—confident, sexy, smart . . . his next fling. But the more he pursues her, the more Garrett shares a side of himself that other women don’t normally get to see.

Olivia has been keeping a secret. While Garrett lives for the next thrill, Olivia’s not sure she’ll live to see the next day. She’s undergoing treatment for some serious medical issues, and she doesn’t have time for a relationship with no guarantees—especially one with a hot-as-sin womanizer who won’t take no for an answer. But as she gets to know the real Garrett, Olivia can’t help falling for him . . . hard. To reveal the truth would mean risking everything—but you can’t score without taking the tough shots.

Garrett is an incredibly heartfelt story with emotional depth and one of the best epilogues I've ever read!

REVIEW:

The story:

Olivia has just discovered she is about to face one of the biggest challenges life can throw at you. She's dealing with a life threatening illness and romance is the last thing on her mind. But after meeting hockey star, Garrett, romance may not be that far away. Things start out casual, and Olivia is reluctant to share her life threatening issues with a man who's known for he's philandering ways. She also believes it's unfair to to start a relationship with him, knowing that her future is uncertain. But Garrett's not willing to let her go that easily, and for the first time he's acutely thinking about the future with one woman. But will Olivia's secret tear them apart or bring them closer together?

This story was extremely emotional and I found myself in tears several times. This wasn't a simple light hearted, fluffy romance. There is depth and heartache and yes some sexy times too.

The characters:

I loved Garrett from the very beginning, which I found strange since I'm not really a fan of 'the player' heroes. But Garrett's attitude to the women was what made the difference, he's respectful and just looking to have some fun. I also adored the way he treated Olivia, he was so kind and caring and protective a her. Simply put, Garrett is awesome.

Olivia is a creative and vibrant character, and despite facing an uncertain future she has such a positive attitude. She still had her fragile moment (as anyone in her situation would), but she didn't let it change her. She shows incredible strength and determination and was a really inspiring character.

The romance:

Their relationship might have begun as one fun night, but it was clear neither of them would be able to leave it at that. Garrett turns into such a sweetie and becomes very protective of Olivia. And while Olivia's cousin and his best friend Alex, warn him to stay away from her, I was so happy to see him defend his relationship. These two deal with a lot of ups and downs, but it's those challenges that made their connection so much stronger.

The writing:

Sawyer's writing is always very emotive, but this is her most powerful story yet. Illness is never an easy topic to write about, especially when trying to balance realism with that all important HEA, but I think Sawyer found the perfect mix. And absolute top marks for that EPIC epilogue, I can't even begin the describe how simply amazing it was. Possibly one of the best epilogues I've ever read - it was exactly the ending this book needed to give the reader closure.

FINAL WORD:

Garrett is an incredibly heartfelt story with emotional depth and one of the best epilogues I've ever read!

CONTENT:

Sexuality: medium / several sex scenes

Violence: mild

Language: medium - strong / frequent f words

Drugs & alcohol: mild