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Beyond The Play #4

ALC provided by NetGalley

Author: Grace Reilly 

Narrators: Faith Clark and Oscar Reyes

Isabelle and Nikolai have a whirlwind summer romance in NYC – she’s there for an internship and he’s her boss’s son. He is also her brother’s rival on the ice. When they parted, they weren’t expecting to miss each other so much, but that’s life. Until Fate intervenes: Nikolai gets expelled from his university, his mega-rich grandfather pulls some strings and he gets transferred to McKee, Isabelle’s campus and her brother’s hockey team. They thought they would never meet again and now staying away from each other is out of the question. 

I loved this one! Though 4th in the series, it can be enjoyed as a standalone. Isabelle is a ray of sunshine and we fall for her along with Nikolai. Nikolai is your tortured hero with a tragic past that keeps intruding in his present and you want to give him a hug. I loved their relationship and how supportive they are of each other. I also adored the Callahans. Though it was my first time meeting them I loved “catching up” with all of them. A wonderful story of growth, found family (like TRULY, you’ll see) and hockey!

Narrated dual style by Faith Clark and Oscar Reyes. Faith is new narrator to me and I really enjoyed her performance. Oscar Reyes shines in this one as he performs the whole book in a Russian accent (and an occasional Australian one). As I like to joke, he’s cornered the market of #sadtorturedboys and he is amazing here. As always.  I totally recommend the audio!

Thanks, NetGalley, for the audiobook. 

Rep: queer secondary characters 

Content notes: domestic abuse, alcoholism, disordered eating, anxiety and panic attacks, toxic relationship with a parent