Shining Through is a fascinating romantic story. I love ice skating and really enjoyed reading about Tabitha's career. She's a driven person, but she's also someone who doesn't always follow her dreams. Tabitha and Daniil come from different backgrounds and can learn from each other. Tabitha never takes anything for granted and has to work incredibly hard for every achievement. Daniil managed to get in trouble a few times, he never has to worry about money and he can do whatever he wants to do. He doesn't know what it's like to be loved though. He teaches Tabitha how to loosen up and she shows him how to take responsibility and put in as much effort as possible. Besides their common professional interests they have plenty of sparks and they are a good intellectual match as well, which is a great basis for a story.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the fourth book in the series – and whilst they are definitely linked, you could read this first and enjoy it in its own right (then go back and read the rest!).

This installment gets us situated within the competitive world of singles skating, and the way that a 23-year-old woman is basically passed it already in that world. Tabitha, however, has a mission to retire on a high and repay her family for their dedication to her career. As her routine does not incite passion in her, she fears that her technical skills will not be enough.

I love how much sport there is in this book, and once we get Daniil's story woven in too, it is easy to get completely engaged and want them to do every routine perfectly. The issue of sponsorship, costs, and coaches, as well as the requirements of diet and early nights all contribute to the story. But don't worry, it is most definitely not all early nights!

The relationship between Tabitha and Daniil is intense from the very beginning, and fits the way that they live. Inevitably it is not smooth as the ice they skate on, but then nothing worthwhile ever is...

As someone who can't stop on ice skates without using the boards (that's why they're there, surely?) I've always loved watching other people skating, whether it's competitive figure skating or hockey. (Those are the only two sports that compete at the winter Olympics, right?) So reading about figure skaters and hockey players? Totally right up my alley. So when I heard that there was a new Red Hot Russians book, my response was, "Yes, please!"

Shining Through was a solid addition to the series. Tabitha and Daniil are the couple who shouldn't work at all but somehow totally do. She's "America's Sweetheart" who's trying to finally bring home Olympic gold in her last competitive season, the girl whose family has made sacrifices for her to be able to skate her whole life. He's the son of a Russian oligarch who's rebelled against...well, pretty much everything...by being the bad boy of ice skating, so much so that his own country's program won't sponsor his career. They shouldn't work together, yet somehow they do. Until they almost don't...

I liked both Tabitha and Daniil--it was easy to root for them, both in their skating and in their relationship. Things were a tad bit rushed toward the end of the book, but as I was anxious for them to get to their HEA, I didn't mind too much. (Still--no actual page time for their Olympic routines was a bit of a bummer...)

Shining Through is the fifth book in the series, but could absolutely be read as a standalone--some of the other series characters make appearances, but it's not necessary to have read their stories (yet!) to enjoy this one.

Rating: 4 stars / B+

I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.

Readers are once again pulled into the competitive world of ice skating in this fourth installment in the Red Hot Russians series that gives us a romance between the Golden Girl of skating and the bad boy just coming back from suspension. It’s a sweet and sexy tale of opposites attracting that vividly details the ups and downs of skating, the sacrifices and mental pressures associated with a sport known for its artistry. Add in a bit of melodrama that came out of left field and readers will be on the edge of their seats waiting to see if Daniil and Tabitha win gold at the Olympics as well as get their HEA.

Tabitha Turner’s road to gold has been a tough one from childhood. The daughter of a single parent meant money was tight and the sacrifices many for their entire family. Numerous moves, begging for ice time, and devoting herself to being the best made for a lonely life for Tabitha. While her sister got to be the Wild Child, Tabitha constantly honed her craft and kept her reputation pristine in hopes of gaining endorsements and keeping her benefactor happy. Seeing others living lives she longs for is starting to wear on her though and just as the most important year in her skating life begins she decides to take her own walk on the wild side. The moment she saw Daniil Andreev on the ice she was obsessed. He was every decadent delight she always wanted to sample and when one clandestine night of fun leads to friendship, he’ll be her guide to living life to the fullest. With Daniil, Tabitha can finally be herself and fully express all her hopes and fears. As their relationship takes a more sensual turn, she finds that love quickly becomes a distraction...but is it a distraction worth sacrificing her future for or will she let Daniil take the fall when vindictive individuals try to sabotage his chances of winning? Tabitha’s a likable character who knows how much her family has sacrificed for her and is desperate to be successful so she can repay them for all they gave up for her dream. Though her image of being the Golden Girl of skating will lead to endorsements she becomes resentful of that image as she longs to do more than just skate. She wants to be like other young women and Daniil is just the person to help her experience everything she’s always wanted to try. She knew of Daniil’s past and seemed to accept it, but when a disastrous performance has her lashing out she throws his questionable past in his face which left me disappointed. Her decision to keep their relationship secret started off with a reasonable excuse but as time went on I started to get annoyed with her for it. For all the love and support Daniil gave her she threw his feelings back at him in a heartbreaking moment that she was able to luckily redeem herself from courtesy of a Grand Gesture. For all the hard work she put in, for the admirable reasons she wants to succeed, I was left rooting for her every step of the way both on and off the ice to reach her HEA.

Daniil Andreev has a colorful past as the son of a model and a mafia don. He started out playing hockey but started ice skating to embarrass his father. There wasn’t a lot of love from his parents growing up, but there was lots of money which made things easy for him. With money, and the need for attention, Daniil quickly came to be seen as the Bad Boy of the ice with lots of partying and women surrounding him. It all eventually catches up to him though with a suspension and being cut loose from the support of the Russian Federation. Wanting to be taken seriously he works his way back to the ice with a goal of getting Olympic gold. The moment he sees Tabitha though he’s obsessed and becomes determined to make himself worthy of America’s Sweetheart in a journey of cutting ties with his past and finding HEA despite all the roadblocks that get in the way. Daniil’s oh so sexy and surprisingly sweet. He doesn’t rush Tabitha when it comes to his feelings for her, he’s happy to start off as her friend. As they grow closer, heartfelt talks lead to secretive encounters as she has her own reasons for keeping him as her dirty little secret. Those reasons saddened him and frustrated me which caused big problems later on in the story. That wasn’t the only bump in the road late in the story for Daniil as a crime he’s charged with came out of the blue and felt a bit melodramatic. It invaded the lovely romance brewing between the two of them and felt unnecessary to the storyline as there was already plenty of emotional angst weighing on the both of them. On a whole I found myself enamored with Daniil and his bad boy persona that hid a heart of gold, who just wanted to be loved, and who I was cheering for from the moment I first saw him.

Daniil’s love of skating shines through in this story, and he’s just the thing Tabitha needs to find joy in skating once again. This made their time on the ice together combustible in scenes teeming with sexual tension and happiness. It’s clear Ms. Harmon knows a lot about ice skating as she vividly depicted all the ins and outs of competition and being in the spotlight. Her love of the sport is more than obvious and kept me fully invested in these character’s outcomes in scenes that left my heart pounding each time they took off from the ice until they landed. I enjoyed seeing skaters from past installments in the series and the feeling of family this sport engendered in all of them. The romance between Daniil and Tabitha was sweet and sexy and was nicely balanced with the obligations of being an ice skater where it’s not always glamorous and people aren’t who they always appear. This is another satisfying addition to the Red Hot Russians series and I hope that the author has many more books on the horizon as it’s a compelling series full of appealing characters and action-packed scenes on and off the ice.

Whilst this is part of the Red Hot Russians series, I believe it works well as a standalone and you don’t need to read the others to appreciate and enjoy this story.

Sometimes what you dreamed of and worked so hard for just gets to be too much. Tabitha Turner is nicknamed Miss Perfect. She’s America’s golden girl, hoping to win gold in the Winter Olympic Games figure skating competition, the Ice Princess . . . Whilst she’s still determined to succeed, she’s also had enough of the expectations and pressure. She’s ready for her own bit of ‘me time’. Contrastingly, Russian Daniil Andreev is also just as competitive but he also has his wild side and rarely conforms. Can two such driven skaters find each other behind the glitz and glamour of the skating world? Can they trust each other and overcome the pressures to give their mutual attraction the chance to grown into more?

This is another brilliant book in this series, this time featuring two characters fighting against the odds to achieve their dreams. Watching their relationship develop through the story is great. The story provides lots of behind the scenes action and glimpses, putting the world of competitive figure skating under the spotlight as the story progresses. There are a multitude of secondary characters, from family to coaches, choreographers and so many others, all making their own contributions to the atmosphere and events. This is a fun read and I have no hesitation in recommending it and the other stories in the series! 

I requested and received a copy of this novel, via NetGalley, with no obligation. This is my honest review after choosing to read it.

I've loved this series from the start...it has everything I love, romance, Russians, ice skating, Olympics...it's definitely one of my favorites. Daniil and Tabitha have great chemistry which would allow me to put the book down. I love how Harmon captures all thing Russian, a place and culture I've been fascinated by since the 80's. As long as Harmon keeps writing this series, I will keep buying it. Love it!

The career of her dreams has become the life of her nightmares. Perfection is the goal and Tabitha is determined to deliver the goods, even if her heart is no longer in the sport. Shining Through is an up close and personal look at the drama behind the glamour of ice skating. There's grace, heat and romance. Ms. Harmon spotlights two characters working their way back, in an atmosphere that is as cold as the stage on which they perform. The excitement of competition has nothing on the sparks that heat up the connection between Daniil and Tabitha.

This is the first book in the series that I have read. It works as a stand alone. I will definitely be going back to read the previous books because I liked this one. I liked Harmon's writing and the world of figure skating. It was a new to me and interesting setting for a romance novel and I found it refreshing.

I liked Tabitha and Daniil. Daniil was not really a bad boy but the pressures he faces were compelling. Tabitha is a very sympathetic character. I would not last a minute being stuck in the perfect persona she needs to portray to the world. The conflict in their relationship seemed unconvincing (their argument seemed so forced) and honestly unnecessary but it was dealt with quickly. On the whole I found this a fun book to escape into for an evening and would recommend it to others looking to do the same.

This book just didn't do anything for me. I could not get into the relationship between Tabitha and Daniil. I found the premise not quite believable.