Title: Long Shot
Author: Kennedy Ryan
Genre: Basketball Romance
A FORBIDDEN LOVE SET IN THE EXPLOSIVE WORLD OF THE NBA...
Think you know what it's like being a baller's girl?
You don't.
My fairy tale is upside down.
A happily never after.
I kissed the prince and he turned into a fraud.
I was a fool, and his love - fool's gold.
Now there's a new player in the game, August West.
One of the NBA's brightest stars.
Fine. Forbidden.
He wants me. I want him.
But my past, my fraudulent prince, just won't let me go.
*Author's Note: There are aspects of this story that may be sensitive for some readers.
Think you know what it's like being a baller's girl?
You don't.
My fairy tale is upside down.
A happily never after.
I kissed the prince and he turned into a fraud.
I was a fool, and his love - fool's gold.
Now there's a new player in the game, August West.
One of the NBA's brightest stars.
Fine. Forbidden.
He wants me. I want him.
But my past, my fraudulent prince, just won't let me go.
*Author's Note: There are aspects of this story that may be sensitive for some readers.
5 Stars
Long Shot
is the first title in the Hoops series, and whilst it features the world of the
NBA it’s not your typical sports romance.
Long Shot is a powerful, emotional, dark and raw story that will keep
you captivated. It’s not an easy read,
but it’s incredibly heartfelt and well written.
Without
giving away too much of the plot, this story features a couple who meet, and
their connection is instant, it’s deep and meaningful, but their timing is all
wrong. Life, circumstances and fears
stand in their way.
The
characters in this story are incredibly complex, and endearing. It’s a thought provoking read with a heroine
who is incredibly strong, brave, enduring, inspiring and most of all a
survivor. The man she trusts with
everything she holds dear, is incredibly kind, giving, patient, and has a
beautiful loving heart. Their connection
is enviable despite all they endure in order to happiness.
Long Shot
is an incredibly well written read full of twists and turns that will keep you
enthralled, even when this story was difficult to read I felt compelled to keep
reading. The content of this story may
not be suitable for everyone, and could very likely be a trigger for some readers.
I adored
the side characters and cannot wait to see which characters will feature in
future Hoops titles. This was my first
time reading anything written by Kennedy Ryan, but it will not be my last. Long Shot is one of those stories, that
although it wasn’t the easiest to read, it will stay with me for a very long
time, due to the feelings, thoughts and understandings it provoked.
“Iris?” August’s frown, the concern on his face, in his voice, remind me where I am. “Baby, you okay?”
I blink down at him dumbly, swallowing my tears, eating my memories whole and digesting a nightmare from long ago. I nod, my lips a cold, wobbly curve.
“Kiss me,” he whispers, his eyes so tender, so intent.
I remember a magical night under the stars, under a streetlight on the eve of greatness. A night filled with laughter and confidences, pregnant with promise. And I see him so clearly, my prince, asking for a kiss.
And I do.
I kiss him like the world might end tonight because I’ll never take this for granted. Not his kindness, when I’ve known cruelty all too well. Not his tenderness, when I’ve been handled roughly in the past. Not his love, when I’ve been possessed and owned and mistreated.
He thaws me with his kiss, my prince, and I melt into him. We’re chest to chest, with August’s number crushed between us. I take his cock in my hand, aligning our bodies, and two become one in a carnal slide of flesh. I anchor myself by my elbows hooked around his neck, and we kiss until I’m dizzy and our breaths tangle in a cloud of bliss. Under the jersey, his palm spans my back, digging into the naked flesh as our hips lock and roll and grind. My body clenches around him, and we pray, we curse, we moan, we mate like our bodies were made for this moment.
Ours is a love that reimagines—that peels back the sky at high noon searching for the stars, collecting them like shells in a bucket. We bathe in stardust, drink from the Milky Way, and dance on the moon. We pierce the firmament, peer into infinity, and tread on time and space. There is no before. There is no after. Now gives birth to forever. This moment may die, but this love never will. Time is not a line. It’s a circle, and we, August and Iris, we stand at the center.
TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY
Kennedy Ryan is a Southern girl gone Southern California. A Top 100 Amazon Bestseller, Kennedy writes romance about remarkable women who thrive even in tough times, the love they find, and the men who cherish them.
She is a wife to her lifetime lover and mother to an extraordinary son. She has always leveraged her journalism background to write for charity and non-profit organizations, but enjoys writing to raise Autism awareness most. A contributor for Modern Mom Magazine, Kennedy’s writings have appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul, USA Today and many others. The founder and executive director of a foundation serving Georgia families living with Autism, she has appeared on Headline News, Montel Williams, NPR and other media outlets as a voice for families living with autism.
