“Can I get you anything to drink?”
“Water with a side of brutal honesty?”
“Can’t say that’s on the menu. How about Earl Grey and a healthy side of avoidance?”

It's charming and amusing exchanges like that ^^, that make Going for the Goal so much fun to read. Sweet, light and flirty, I was pleasantly surprised by this book—my first by author Sara Rider.

Nick and Jillian are lovable from their first meeting, a banter-filled flirt-fest that set the scene for their second meeting years later. And their chemistry? Electric. Simply, this couple is one that is easy to root for. I wanted them together so much, and I really fell for Nick—hockey star in need of a PR makeover and a new agent. He was sweet and kind and sexy, and ahhh, his relationship with his brother was one of my absolute favorite things about this book.

Jillian was a slighter tougher nut to crack for me. While I loved her drive, her ethics and her hard-edged approach—how she proved she could play with the ‘big boys’—I faltered a little over some of her decisions. In particular, one toward the end that is a trope of which I am not much a fan.

Having said that, I was incredibly happy with how this book played out. It maybe glossed over a couple of things that I felt deserved a bit more attention, but on the whole, Going for the Hosl was an incredibly fun, engaging and sexy romance. And certainly not my last by this new-to-me-but-not-for-long author.

“Number one, I’ll buy you all the jewelry you want if I win the Stanley Cup. Two, I look damn good in a panda suit.”

~ FOUR STARS ~

Great sports romance between Nick, and his agent, Jillian. Nick is old school hockey but that isn't working now. He needs a make-over and Jillian is just the person to help him. Fun, sexy sports romance!

This is a fast paced, engaging, feel good sports romance about a bad boy hockey player. It is the first book I have read by Sara Rider and now I want to go back and read the other two books in this entertaining series. GOING FOR THE GOAL is the third book in the Perfect Play series and is a standalone.

Jillian Nichols became a sports agent because she loves sports and she wants to help athletes. She has personally seen how sports agents take advantage of their clients and she is determined to help her clients in any way she can. Even though she is hardworking and ethical, she is frustrated she not taken seriously in this male dominated industry.

Hockey star, Nick Salinger is near the end of his career and his only goal is to win the Stanley Cup before he retires. After firing his last agent, he asks Jillian to represent him. Nick is a good guy but has developed a bad reputation. As the team's enforcer, Nick is protective and thinks it is his job to defend everyone on his team, whether they are on or off the ice. Unfortunately, his behavior gets him into trouble and his team is thinking about trading him.

Jillian reluctantly agrees to represent Nick. She knows adding a big hockey superstar to her roster will help her get a foothold in the industry, but she wonders if Nick is worth the trouble. However, Jillian is surprised to discover, the more time she spends with Nick, the more she likes him. She tries to ignore the sizzling chemistry between them because she knows it would be career suicide to get involved with a client. Nick likes everything about Jillian. He admires how hard she works and her fiestyness and he knows he can trust her with his career. I enjoyed Nick and Jillian’s story as they maneuver through life and figure out the what is important to them. This is a fun and entertaining story with characters that are easy to connect with. If you like cocky, alpha male heroes, with a soft heart and spirited heroines, you will love this story.

When you meet someone and get that instant danger feeling from the instant attraction, you know sparks will fly. And the sparks flew throughout this book.

Nick and Jillian could be a match made in heaven, but 10 yrs have past since they last saw each other and things have changed. Nick has gotten hotter and is known to be trouble on the ice and in bed. Jillian has gotten a bit jaded about men in her profession and the last thing she needs is to be Nick's agent or next in line lover.

Sparks fly each time they meet and you can feel it on every single page. Sara Rider brings us another stand alone read in this series that is dripping with anticipation and delicious, panty melting steam and scenes.

Nick is sex on a stick (pun intended) and this read is seriously hot! Just like the others in this series, this is one not to be missed, especially by those who love sports related story themes. Yum!

Very slow paced. I couldn't really connect with any of the characters. The hockey parts were cool. I thought the ending was adorable.

A fun, flirty romance novel between a sports agent and a professional hockey player. I liked the spark of attraction between the two of them, as well as the way the book focused on issues Jillian faced as a woman in a male-dominated industry. The development of their relationship from flirtation to love unfortunately was minimal.

I have read and enjoyed all of Sara Rider's books and while this was not my favorite by her I still quite enjoyed it. I like how past characters are present in her books without taking over the story. Her writing style is one I like but it's her characters that really shine for me.

I am reviewing this book based on an ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest opinion.

Do I like missed connections? Yes.
Do I like career women in male dominated industries? Yes.
Do I like professional athletes being all vulnerable and adorable? Yes.
So, did I like Going for the Goal? YES.

Really liked this story, it was very engaging and funny at times

I received this ARC from Netgalley for an honest review.

When Jillian and Nick meet for the first time, there is instant chemistry. Fast forward ten years. Jillian is a semi-successful sports agent and Nick is a hockey player with a bad reputation who needs a sports agent. Nick persuades Jillian to represent him against her better judgement. There is still a spark between the two of them, but Jillian insists that they keep it professional. Can she stick to that? Great hockey romance book, decent amount of hockey talk and characters that I really wanted to know.

GOING FOR THE GOAL is a hearty story that will stick to your ribs…and warm your heart!

Nick is your typical ego-driven, overblown athlete that fights on and off the ice and thinks the sun rises and sets for his own purpose…on the outside. On the inside, he’s a loyal brother and friend protecting the ones he calls his own against any threats, whether it’s with words or fists. This has given Nick the reputation of a short-tempered brawler/bad boy, which is quickly becoming frowned upon. Nick is literally skating on thin ice in his career and after nine seasons with the New York Vipers hockey team, he’s very likely getting traded…unless he can turn his image around. That’s where Jillian comes in.

Jillian is an amazing heroine. She’s tough, persistent and very hard working. Her struggles to be successful in the male-dominated career field were admirable and endearing. Jillian never gave up, no matter how many setbacks she suffered. She’s also very passionate about her work and sincerely cares about her clients. Jillian certainly isn’t without her flaws, but she wasn’t too proud to acknowledge them either. I admired her greatly!

Nick and Jillian are brilliant together! Their chemistry was off the charts but it’s their moments out of the bedroom that made my heart swoon and my knees a little weak! I love how supportive Nick was of Jillian’s career. Their pairing was seamless and natural.

What I also really loved about the book were the secondary characters. They really pulled the story together, filling in all the nooks and crannies with their sage advice, humorous retorts and loving support for Nick and Jillian. I never wanted it to end!

Sara Rider is a new author to me and I am so glad I took a chance on this book! I love Ms. Rider’s writing style and her quirky sense of humor. She’s definitely made a new fan in me. GOING FOR THE GOAL is definitely a book I’d recommend you add to your reading pile.

***I voluntarily read an ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All conclusions reached are my own***

Going for the Goal is Sarah Rider’s third book and it’s loosely connected to the first two. However, instead of football (soccer), this book focuses on (ice) hockey. I enjoyed reading about a sport I know nothing about (hockey in Holland always refers to the field version) and my lack of knowledge was never a problem.
I liked the characters and I understood why they were attracted to each other, but I didn’t quite see how that attraction changed into love so quickly. For me there was nothing that showed their connection became deeper, even though I was told they loved each other.
I’ve read both of Rider’s other books and though I enjoyed them there was also something about the writing that I found a little annoying from time to time. The annoyance was completely gone in this book and that’s enough for me to continue following Rider’s career.

The synopsis sounded like my sort of sorbet, so I was pretty excited to get the invite to read this.

I loved Jillian and Nick. They're both stubborn and loyal to a fault. They butted heads and pushed each other's buttons and it was all so much fun to read. Oh, and their chemistry was off the charts.

The conflict was intriguing and I loved the small twist at the end. Of course there was a lot of miscommunication and jumping to conclusions, but it wasn't quite as annoying as normal.

Overall, a quick and cute read. I'll definitely be looking into the other books in the series.

**Huge thanks to Pocket Star for the invite to read**

This was my first book from Sara Rider and I loved it. It's well written and captivating! I loved the fact that the had met before and took quite a while to cross paths again. Definitely will read more Rider's books from now on.

A really good book by a new to me author, I got really invested in the characters and were rooting for them to get their HEA. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for a honest review.

Perfect blend of hockey action and romance will have readers entertained. Fans of Sawyer Bennett, Catherine Gayle, Kelly Jamieson, and Sophia Henry will love this book. Definitely recommend!

Nick is all about protecting and standing up for the people who he cares about. Lucky for Jillian that she falls into this category. Jillian has built her career defending the sports players best interest that she has as clients. They really don't know how lucky they are. I really enjoyed this book and can't wait for the next book in the Perfect Play series.

loved this book. fast paced, kept my attention

Jillian Nichols is a ambitious sports agent that combines her personal passion for sports as well as her clients best interests which ultimately creates a solid agent/client relationship. She puts her heart and soul into her profession and has a determination to succeed. She picks her clients very carefully so when Nick Salinger, veteran hockey star, asks for her to rep him, Jillian immediately declines. Well the truth is the two met 9 year prior and the chemistry was off the charts, but having never had an encounter since that night, the only info she has on Nick is what she reads in the papers. Hot-headed, quick tempered and spoiled is her thoughts of Mr. Salinger which in no way makes her want to represent him....but fate could have a way of changing her mind!!!

I loved this second chance romance! Even though Nick and Jillian only had one night of serious flirting the two never forgot one another. Nick was such a stand-up guy and I couldn't wait for the moment Jillian figured that out! Sara Rider does an awesome job with writing sports romances that have leading ladies that are strong and independent-- love that!! Going for the Goal is a 4.5 star read that I highly recommend! I cannot wait to read the next book in this addictive series!!

Can we talk about how much I love this book. Hockey, sexy men with a sweet side, and a go getter female it was my trifecta. How did I not know people wrote books about hockey and romance… together?

This book was sexy, sweet and funny. I was in full blown laughter several times. If an author can make me laugh and spin a story that has steam and interest, I’m hooked. Sara Rider has me caught that’s for certain.

Jillian Nichols is a sports agent intern when we meet her for the first time at a party where she’s attempting to get a young sport star to sign with the agency she’s working for. Nick Salinger, known as “the Punisher”, is the NHL’s bad boy with a penchant for messing hot headed situations he settles with all 220 pounds of his 6 foot three frame. When the two run into each other at the party Jillian’s attending for work sparks fly and lips briefly meet, but she quickly disappears when the man she’s spent the past hour bearing her brain to turns out to be a famous hockey player she should be avoiding.

Years later, despite following the career of the Enforcer to his stardom with the New York Vipers she’s flabbergasted when the man walks into her sports agency demanding she represent him. Of course, no one is more surprised than the man in question when the small time agent turns him down and sends him packing with a stab in the thigh with her paperweight. What follows is a little bit of begging, a lot of heat and liberal dose of laughter as Jillian does her best to rebrand, rework, and reexamine everything she knows about this “alpha-hole hockey star” and as he does his best to comply with the strict mandates his sexy agent, who he can’t get enough of, sets for him. Toss in some dissolving contracts, another bad boy hockey star who’s all about himself no matter who he injures, and a loveable brother who bakes “famous vanilla rum French toast with peaches and whipped cream” and you have the perfect story to satisfy all your sexy hockey dreams.

I’ll be raving about this to all my hockey fan friends, even the guys who will surely roll their eyes at me.

Ms. Rider’s quotes are too great to avoid mentioning. A few of my favorite are:

“You’re a six-foot-three, two hundred and twenty-pound man with a dark and broody thing going on. That means you have to try ten times harder to come across as nice. You can use your millions to dry you manly tears.”

“How bad was it?” “She stabbed me in the leg with her paperweight.”

“Fine like you partied hard enough to be on a first-name basis with the NYPD and are to embarrassed to tell me the details? Or fine like you’ve started your own cat harem in your apartment and have since christened yourself Queen Purr?”

I hope there are more hockey related stories in this author’s future because I’m down for all things in that particular category even if that does rank somewhere within the “Puck Bunny” ranks.

** I received this book as an ARC in exchange for my honest unbiased feedback and review.***