The sparks of dislike burn hot, but the sparks of mutual attraction burn even hotter.
Ever Montgomery suffered the ultimate betrayal by the one man who she should have been able to count on for anything. It has left her hurt, jaded and incapable of forming relationships, but it also means that she can spot a liar a mile away. These traits are earning her a reputation as a reporter with a keen nose for a good story and a complete understanding of the extreme power of the written word.
Lincoln Caldwell, is the hot goalie for the New York Rangers. At twenty-four and a rising star, he works hard and he plays even harder. He’s gorgeous and carefree—the ultimate charmer. Ladies fall at his feet and the single life has never been lived the way Linc Caldwell does it.
When Ever publishes an article about Linc containing information that she received off the record, she finds herself on the receiving end of the athelete’s fury. Rather than basking in the glory of exposing Linc as a shameless user of women, she finds herself at his mercy when he demands and receives retribution. Required by her editor to trail Linc for six weeks, Ever is forced to look at the real Linc Caldwell.
And she just might find that she has misjudged him.
Kindle Edition
Expected Publication: June 11th 2013 by Big Dog Books
eArc received from author in exchange for an honest review
Where to Find Off the Record:
GoodReads | Amazon | B&N
Where to Find Sawyer Bennett:
***4 1/2 Stars***
Is it wrong that my immediate response to finishing this book was that I hoped that Sawyer Bennett would be continuing this series by writing about Ren? Because that's what I'm hoping. I'm not ready for to stop reading about this family.
1) Linc. Seriously. Can a man like this exist? I mean. Hmmmm. Let me delineate the ways that he is wonderful: he's honest, sincere, hard working, devoted to his family, fun, smart, caring, patient, kind...omg, I'm going to use every nice adjective there is. Okay, he's not perfect but he's pretty darn close. Every negative quality he exhibits is completely understandable and in some cases when he does succumb to a negative feeling it actually turns into something positive. Not only is Linc good to his friends and family, he freely gives his time away to others in need with no expectation of praise or acknowledgement. Swoon. He's almost too nice...but that would be unrealistic, so Sawyer Bennett does give him a little sexy edge (especially when it comes to his feelings about women, but Ever in particular).
2) Ever. I rarely call one of my book girls a bitch; it's just not in me to do so. But after the stunt Ever pulls with her article on Linc that is exactly what I thought of her. Don't get me wrong, I love a hard ass, independent, smart woman. I love it when one of my book girls resists her book boy and really gives him a hard time as she examines her feelings but even I was ready to slap her silly and say ENOUGH ALREADY, give in and just go with it. She fought her feelings until the very end. She was just so hardened. She was THE alpha female--not to diminish Linc at all because he had the means and ability to dominate her and he did--but she was pretty hardcore in her ability to freeze people out. You'd think, then, that I'd not like her but I did. I was rooting for her to melt the ice around her heart...almost pulled out my hair dryer to help her do it...and I really wanted to see her explore the beauty of love. Let's just say that before I had to resort to getting the hair dryer, the ice began to melt.
3) A cause. In Off the Record Sawyer Bennett took up the cause of volunteerism. She had her characters take up the back breaking work of cleaning up after a natural disaster. This is something particularly close to my heart. I have lived in Louisiana all of my life and have had the misfortune of living through some of the worst hurricane seasons ever. I've lived through devastation and the clean up that follows after it. I've seen thousands of volunteers lend their hands and hearts to help rebuild New Orleans and the surrounding areas and I know how grateful all of us have been to have the help and love. Reading about it from a character's perspective and sharing that with readers all over the world is heartwarming. To know that it might encourage others to join in to help the next time a major disaster makes me adore Sawyer Bennett even more than I already do. I just love that she takes up important causes in her novels and provides insights without shoving it down her reader's throats. Bravo, Sawyer!
If all of this isn't enough to sway you to buy the book, here are some additional factors: she includes Emily and Nix in this story and so we see a continuation of their love story and she also includes the steam factor--this book is so steamy and the sexual tension is, well, tense. You'll probably want to make out with your significant other at some point to release some of that tension...not a bad side effect at all. I truly enjoyed this book and have my fingers crossed for another few stories in this series!
***5 Stars***
Well, shee-it...how's a girl supposed to follow that, Shelley. I personally loved Linc's appearances in Off Limits, but I was Team Nix 100% so I tried to keep my mind as open as possible to see if Lincoln Caldwell could steal my book love.
1) So Linc is all of those things Shelley said so eloquently. He's nice, he is great with kids, he is tight with his family, always thinks of them and takes such good care if his Dad and Nix. He seems to really be there glue. His only fatal flaw to keep him from being perfect is that he he's one of those "I don't do relationships" kind of guys. Now, I have a feeling this line gets used a lot in the real world, but I don't get how it works. C'mon ladies. These bimbos keep falling for it hook line and sinker, and Linc's philosophy toward women creates a lot of drama for him in the beginning with Ever. He does take a stand for himself, and when he feels a teeny bit guilty for his decisions you see again how great of a guy he is. Linc also has the hot hockey player thing going for him, and I have a weakness for athlete stories. (Okay, you're probably thinking "What don't you have a weakness for?") Linc majorly brings it in the steam category
2) Ever. She most definitely has a hardened heart by all of the crap she's went through from men. Daddy issues with a capital D and a cheating fiance to boot, I honestly connected with her the most out of all of the girls in this series. Crazy right. Yes, she was a bitch in what she did to Linc. I couldn't believe what she wrote in the article about him, and how unprofessional she was. For such a huge newspaper it is a freaking miracle she didn't get fired or sued by them instead of Linc's threats! She was really trying hard to get over her issues eventually, but the angst was heavy for her to get her even pointed in the right direction on the compass. I adored her interactions with her mother, because as independent as she tries to be it is clear her mama is still her rock. It is proven that time and age is usually what brings about wisdom and understanding, so 16 year old Ever's pain, hurt, and hate still drive a lot of her decisions when it comes to men even after all this time.
3) Volunteering. I had one thing on my mind when the theme of Off the Record came through with the disaster relief. The Joplin Tornado. I was amazed at the end when Sawyer mentioned that this was the actual inspiration (and the timing of the most recent tornadoes in OK, which is freaky how that turned out unfortunately!) and that she came here to volunteer herself. I live about an hour from there, and saw first hand how many people it takes to help after something like that, and I find it awe inspiring that people take time out of their busy lives to volunteer and help in whatever they can. Not everything has to be an out of mind out of sight sort of thing, or for some sort of gain, so *high five* to Sawyer for being one of those people who drop everything and just go when needed!
I enjoyed this book so much and it flew by so fast...definitely one of those that I plan to re-read and so wish I could read again for the first time. Release is on TUESDAY peeps! Keep a close eye on Sawyer online for it the second it goes live!
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