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A review by katemc7
Boarded Hearts by Ruth Stilling
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I know they say not to judge a book by it's cover but I really can't resist these cartoon covers!! And wonderfully enough the cover was on par with the book. It was great. I enjoyed this intro to a new world and these characters. I liked the reverse age gap (I am on the hunt for more of these), the fact that Felicity had no idea who Jon was, the way that Jon helped her with her confidence without even knowing it was exactly what she needed in that time of her life. I also liked Felicity having older children. Most of the time when you read a single parent story it is with younger kids. The older kids gave it a little bit of a different dynamic. I also of course loved the he falls first and HARD coming from a reformed playboy was icing on the cake. UGH that just made me swoon.
Felicity has made some tough decisions. She decided after being married to the same person for forever to get a divorce and move across the world to support her son's dream of being a hockey player. Which is how she finds herself in Seattle where she has to learn how to be herself again. She has made some friends at the office but really hasn't dipped her toe into the dating pool again. All of that changes when she literally runs into Jon Morgan at the hockey arena when picking up tickets for her and her son. Of course she doesn't know who he is. She just knows he is hot and that she is flustered which is why she runs. But then she sees him at the game and he can't seem to keep his eyes off of her. And now she has found herself in this whirlwind where Jon is actively pursuing her to be in his life. Now he has a reputation she is learning. So she doesn't want to be just another girl. She holds him off. Decides they can be friends and that she will just have to ignore this growing attraction between them. But of course that only lasts for so long. He is treating her so differently from her ex husband. He is supportive of her and challenges her in a way that is invigorating. So she decides to go for it. What does she have to lose? She knows what her standards are. She just has to hold him to those. But then something tragic happens and their relationship is put to the test. She just has to show Jon that with the right people in your life, you can survive more than you think.
Jon is getting tired of the same old same old. He is sick of going out and having a different girl in his bed all the time. He finds himself wondering what it would be like to have someone who was always there cheering for you and challenging you. But he doesn't have the time to invest with his hockey schedule. He has also never found himself captivated by a woman until her. He doesn't catch her name but is entranced by her green eyes. He doesn't know if he will see her again but seeing as he saw her at the arena picking up tickets maybe he will see her at one of his games. And then he does. And he can't look away. He finds himself doing things he has never done before like taking time to get to know her. He finds himself wanting to prove he is better than the rumors about him. He finds himself wanting to be better because of her. She is playing hard to get. She tells him they can only be friends, but friends don't look at each other or kiss each other the way they have. He just has to wait her out. It will be worth it, and when things shift it is everything he thought and more. But then the worst case happens out on the ice in a game to one of his teammates that he takes HARD. He finds himself feeling the anxiety and depression he has worked so hard to stay ahead of take over. He is losing himself and knows he will lose Felicity too. No one wants to deal with someone in this state, but then she shocks him and shows him what true love is really all about.
I liked the mental health rep coming from the MMC not the FMC in this one. I would check the triggers here- there is gaslighting, emotional abuse and the death of parents (not depicted in the book). I thought Ruth did a great job dealing with all of these categories. Felicity's husband was awful and seeing how he was versus how Jon was so eye opening to Felicity. It was a growing moment in the best way. I loved how Felicity didn't turn tail during the kind of third act breakup. She stuck it out which was the harder decision to make in my opinion. I enjoyed meeting our future characters and can't WAIT to see what happens with Kate and Jensen (I know there is more than we think going on there). My heart broke for Zach, but I am pumped to meet Luna put him back together. This was a great intro to a series and debut novel!
Felicity has made some tough decisions. She decided after being married to the same person for forever to get a divorce and move across the world to support her son's dream of being a hockey player. Which is how she finds herself in Seattle where she has to learn how to be herself again. She has made some friends at the office but really hasn't dipped her toe into the dating pool again. All of that changes when she literally runs into Jon Morgan at the hockey arena when picking up tickets for her and her son. Of course she doesn't know who he is. She just knows he is hot and that she is flustered which is why she runs. But then she sees him at the game and he can't seem to keep his eyes off of her. And now she has found herself in this whirlwind where Jon is actively pursuing her to be in his life. Now he has a reputation she is learning. So she doesn't want to be just another girl. She holds him off. Decides they can be friends and that she will just have to ignore this growing attraction between them. But of course that only lasts for so long. He is treating her so differently from her ex husband. He is supportive of her and challenges her in a way that is invigorating. So she decides to go for it. What does she have to lose? She knows what her standards are. She just has to hold him to those. But then something tragic happens and their relationship is put to the test. She just has to show Jon that with the right people in your life, you can survive more than you think.
Jon is getting tired of the same old same old. He is sick of going out and having a different girl in his bed all the time. He finds himself wondering what it would be like to have someone who was always there cheering for you and challenging you. But he doesn't have the time to invest with his hockey schedule. He has also never found himself captivated by a woman until her. He doesn't catch her name but is entranced by her green eyes. He doesn't know if he will see her again but seeing as he saw her at the arena picking up tickets maybe he will see her at one of his games. And then he does. And he can't look away. He finds himself doing things he has never done before like taking time to get to know her. He finds himself wanting to prove he is better than the rumors about him. He finds himself wanting to be better because of her. She is playing hard to get. She tells him they can only be friends, but friends don't look at each other or kiss each other the way they have. He just has to wait her out. It will be worth it, and when things shift it is everything he thought and more. But then the worst case happens out on the ice in a game to one of his teammates that he takes HARD. He finds himself feeling the anxiety and depression he has worked so hard to stay ahead of take over. He is losing himself and knows he will lose Felicity too. No one wants to deal with someone in this state, but then she shocks him and shows him what true love is really all about.
I liked the mental health rep coming from the MMC not the FMC in this one. I would check the triggers here- there is gaslighting, emotional abuse and the death of parents (not depicted in the book). I thought Ruth did a great job dealing with all of these categories. Felicity's husband was awful and seeing how he was versus how Jon was so eye opening to Felicity. It was a growing moment in the best way. I loved how Felicity didn't turn tail during the kind of third act breakup. She stuck it out which was the harder decision to make in my opinion. I enjoyed meeting our future characters and can't WAIT to see what happens with Kate and Jensen (I know there is more than we think going on there). My heart broke for Zach, but I am pumped to meet Luna put him back together. This was a great intro to a series and debut novel!