Unfortunately I didn't finish this book, as I couldn't get into it - nothing against the author or book, just not to my personal taste. Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

Jennifer Comeaux has done it again with Gold Rush! I'm such a huge fan of her work as I've also listened to (audiobook version) and loved her novels Crossing the Ice and Losing the Ice. Emily Stokes narrates all three of these novels, and I can relax and let her voice carry me away from my stress. She is an excellent choice to read these stories.

Comeaux really does her research for competitive skating. If I didn't already know she's a huge fan, I'd think she was an Olympic ice skater herself. Her stories reflect her passion and depth of knowledge for the sport. I feel like I know so much about the world of ice skating and what goes on behind the scenes with all of the blood, sweat and tears Comeaux's characters shed to put their all into their performances.

Liza and Braden are adorable together. There's no getting around that! They don't play games but communicate openly and honestly, and that was refreshing to read. It's also a very realistic portrayal of a young girl who wants to accomplish her Olympic dreams but also wants to make time for "normal" teenager things like dating. I loved them together, and the overprotective reaction of Liza's dad endeared him to me even more (he coaches the couple in the previous books Crossing the Ice and Losing the Ice along with his wife, Liza's stepmom, Emily).

If you're looking for a refreshing romance, Gold Rush is it because how often do you get to read about a romance set in the ice skating world? Not often enough!

This book was really sweet and I appreciate the fact that Liza and Braden became friends first before jumping straight in. He respected her dream and the fact that she was focused on the dream and instead of ditching her he stood by her side and offered her all the support he could give. I’ve always enjoyed reading books or watching movies about figure skating and this one was no exception (although I must admit to looking up a couple of the moves on youtube so I would have a better sense of what was being talked about). I love that Liza doesn’t give up on her dream for some boy because it was something she had been working her whole life for and something she really wanted. I also love how just being friends with Braden helped open her up more to the idea that she can have a life outside of figure skating and still be passionate about it at the same time. With everything going on in her life, from her questioning herself about her feelings towards Braden to the mystery of her parents I know I wouldn’t have been able to concentrate if I were her but she pulled through.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

This book was provided to me by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I knew I would love this book the moment I requested it on Netgalley. It had my type of cover, my type of plot... I love ice skating stories. And it turned out this book was pretty much what I wanted to expect out of it.

I loved the whole friendship to romance part of the book. Sometimes the best romance is always the ones that start out as friends, and that quote was true for this book. This book also reminded me of The Ice Princess, even though the storylines are different. I still had the soundtrack of that movie playing in my head the whole time. The book does get intense with some drama, but I thought it was handled realistically.

This was my first book I've read by this author, but I actually felt like I could relate to her characters well. I liked the fact that the girl character read YA, and she also had an e-reader... and I liked the fact that she was a writer herself. I even kind of wanted to read the stories the character was writing!

This was definitely a five star read because it was a cute, sweet, ice skating type story that I love, and everything just fell smoothly into place. It was one of those books that I wanted to get to the ending quickly, but I also wanted to take my time reading. Very well done! I'll be checking out more of this author's work in the future.

*I received a free copy of this ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Gold Rush was cute and light hearted, but sometimes it dragged a bit.

I think the book took on too much. Liza (18/19--slightly older than Braden) is training for the Olympics and going through the various competitions leading up to it. Add in Braden (18/19), the cute boy she meets at a baseball game. Her parents don't want her becoming distracted by a boy, so of course he is a source of conflict. Add in "the other girl." Also add in trouble with Kathy, one of Liza's coaches. And then add in Liza's tragic past and her untimely obsession with finding out more details about the car accident that killed her adoptive parents/her mom's cousins.

Only two of those, I felt, were resolved in a natural-feeling, somewhat realistic way: her skating career and the conflict with Kathy. The other troubles just kind of dissolved. They were problems, and then they weren't. Well, maybe the deaths of her adoptive parents did, too. Though I really took issue with all of the assumptions Liza made about Dominic (the driver of the other car) and how obsessed she was with him. She basically turned into a stalker. And she accused him of homicide when what happened was clearly manslaughter; it's not as if he sought out and intended to kill her parents.

Overall I liked the characters, though sometimes I couldn't stop myself from figuratively rolling my eyes and asking, "Really?" Examples:
- Braden takes Liza to a college party, where they drink irresponsibly. They both know she's pretty new to alcohol but go ahead with lots of drinks even though her good friend had advised her not to.
- Miscommunication. Obvious miscommunication that I have difficulty believing would occur in real life. Plus friends who are useless in helping to point out said miscommunications but rather perpetuate it.

I'll be honest, my eyelids are heavy right now, so I'm afraid if I continue, this review could get weird. Suffice it to say that this was not my favorite book, but it was not bad.

Note: Some swearing. Lack of consequences for underage drinking and Liza lying to her parents. Editing mistakes that were hopefully corrected for the final copy.

I love, love this story. I have had a thing for figure skating since I was little, always wanting to stop at the mall and watch. I'm even a decent skater for someone who skates three times a year and never had any lessons. So I will almost never turn town a skating story, though I've never read one of Jennifer Comeaux's.

I do suggest reading her books in the order they are published--even though you can read her series out of order, I wish I'd not.

I loved that there wasn't any of the typical drama for stories such as this, most skating books/shows have characters sabotaging each other or talking smack and such, but Liza supported her friends and simply tried to do her best against those she didn't know.

I loved Braden, even if he seemed a bit perfect. I loved each of Liza and Braden's families and their interactions with them. I'm a sucker for family guys, and strong family aspects add so much to a book.

I loved that there were family plot lines and backstory plot lines and boy plot lines and skating plot lines and that they were interwoven neatly.

There's nothing definitively bad about Gold Rush, it just didn't completely wow me so there's the lack of a star. I will most assuredly be purchasing all her previous books to binge read this summer, because I want to meet Emily and Courtney and live their stories. Plus little Liza.

Braden and Liza belong to two different worlds, he's a UMass student, she's a professional figure skater going for gold at Sochi Olympics. With her packed schedule and overprotective parents dating is a no mean feat and her skating career is everything. But even tough their lives seem so different, there's something that they have in common- grief and the feeling of loss. There's one more thing- they can't be anything more than friends, not until the Olympics are over. Will they survive time apart? Will they cope with grief? It's for you to find out! I recommend it to all ice skating fans!

As a fan of the Ice books, I was pretty excited to see that Liza was getting her own story. In the previous books, Liza was a rising star. In Gold Rush, she is the darling of American skating, and trying to navigate her post high school life. She is chasing her "golden destiny" with laser focus, and is reluctant to let anything distract her from her goals. That is, until she meets Braden. For the first time in her life, there is a possibility of romance for Liza, but will it derail her dreams?
"You Googled me?"
"What kind of twenty-first century guy would I be if I didn't?"

If I had to pick one category for this book, I would classify it as a sports romance. As always, Comeaux dazzles us with her skating world knowledge. From the commentary to the description of the skating sequences, it is apparent she is well versed in this world. I especially loved the competition sequences, as I felt like I was there watching it all unfold.

Comeaux also gives us a beautiful and sweet romance. I was shipping this couple from their first meeting, and found myself frustrated over and over again with the various roadblocks that kept popping up. It was hard to sit by, but the relationship between Braden and Liza was never totally dormant. It was growing and changing as Liza grew and changed.
"'No one could ever steal me from you. This is all yours.' He patted his heart."

And that brings me to my next point. I would quickly classify this book as a sports romance, but there was a lot more to it. One aspect of the story I really loved, was how Liza was sort of coming-of-age. She had been very sheltered. She didn't have many friends, went to an all girls school, had never been kissed, and spent most of her time skating. In this book, she grew so much. She had a multitude of new experiences, but most importantly, she was starting to take a controlling interest in her life. She hesitated at times, and she doubted herself, but in the end she blossomed.
"You embraced my dream with your whole heart."

And, seriously, I dare someone not to fall in love with Braden. He is just the sweetest, most considerate guy out there. His patience was tested time and time again, and he passed with flying colors. Actually, I loved him and his family. I sort of wanted them to adopt me.
"You know what you are? You're my personal sunshine."

I was really in the mood for a sweet, adorbs read, and Comeaux gave me exactly what I was looking for.

Overall: A charming romance filled with exhilarating sports sequences, family, friends, and fun.