High Stick

This is the third in the authors’ series about players on a Nashville hockey team. There are also some minor scenes with characters from their earlier series. I don’t think it interferes with enjoying this book if you haven’t read the earlier ones, but if that sort of thing bothers you, be warned that you won’t get much backstory presented about characters who show up from previous books.
The story explicitly plays on the Cinderella story but with several twists. While the hero, Jarret might be a Prince Charming as far as wealth, celebrity, looks, and overall personality, the heroine isn’t a downtrodden victim. Merry Sweet is a hard-worker at two jobs while attending law school at Vanderbilt. She has made one big mistake in her past but, in the overall scheme of mistakes that romance heroines make, it’s not that big a mistake. She paid the price and moved on stronger and more determined to succeed.
Unlike most heroes of romance novels, Jarret deeply desires marriage to a steady, good woman with whom he can be happy and raise children together. He wants what his parents had even though his father, a NHL superstar, died much too young. He thinks he’s found just the sort of woman he’s looking for in Merry. She’s moral, a pastor’s daughter no less, a hard-worker who doesn’t drink or sleep around.
He determinedly pursues her and all seems lovely. Of course, we know that her secret will become public and will cause problems. What makes the difference is that Merry isn’t going to hang her head in shame, but stand up boldly while owning her mistakes.
I liked these characters and was pulling for them all along. I liked the switch from the standard hero who is determined never to have a serious relationship. Jarret made a sweet, if slightly naive, Prince Charming while I admired Merry’s ability to recover from one stupid mistake.
I was given a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

High Stick: Jarret is the third instalment in Alicia Hunter Pace’s exciting hockey series, Nashville Sound.

This story touches on the social gap between a famous hockey player and a struggling young woman holding down multiple jobs, just trying to get ahead. Attraction and a deep-seated respect, form a bond that soon turns into something more, but Jarrett’s sense of right and wrong will be tested as a secret from Merry’s past, threatens his professional image.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and the real life drama and the moral choices that were posed. Great work Ms Pace!

O M G !!!!
I LOVED THIS BOOK!
Jarrett is such a romantic man. (Well, up until a certain point till the end. What??? I'm not ruining it for you - this is very easy to guess even in the beginning!) I think this is my favorite book from this series. It is book 3 and can be read as a standalone, but you shouldn’t do that. You're missing out if you skip the first two books since they are just as good.
I enjoyed how Jarrett fell in love at first sight when he sees/meets Merry. Insta-love!!! Usually, it is the woman who does this so it was a nice twist for me. I really hope there are guys out there just like Jarrett. He wooed her after receiving a little advice from his hockey friend and did it so well, even her friends were in like with him.
I felt this book was well written and easy to follow along. All the characters were well written and it was nice to see some of the previous characters - like Amy and Gabriella. I cannot say enough about this book to convince you to check it out.
I HIGHLY recommend this book!

I truly love these stories written by Alicia Hunter Pace. They are captivating, with characters who capture your heart with their sincerity and genuineness. There are plenty of moments of pure joy and those of heartache...both are guaranteed to need tissues close at hand.

Jarrett and Merry join the couples, who've come before them in this series, in finding their HEA which is richly deserved through the trials they endured and conquered.

This ARC book was complimentary, provided by the Publisher and NetGalley. I am voluntarily providing my honest review.

Jarrett, The Saint, is a follower of rules. Living a life that follows society’s dictates gives him contentment. The only wrinkle in his well-ordered life is the lack of a woman to love, to dance with, to bear his children, to be his perfect partner in a perfect life. When he meets Merry he quickly realizes that what he thought he would never find is actually standing right before him. She is everything he has ever dreamed of and she is…perfect.

Merry is struggling to make ends meet. With student loans and another semester of law school and all its costs looming ahead she works any and every job she can find. Raised in the south by conservative parents, her father a Baptist preacher, she strives to uphold the morale standards they taught her. When she finds herself in a bit of a spot working a wedding reception, she is rescued by Jarrett and swept up into a metaphorical carriage ride that will vanish at the stroke of midnight.

This couple were so endearing. Jarrett with his oft not understood humor and his desire for all things good and wholesome was absolutely adorable, as well as his habit of rambling a bit at times. But his patience in waiting for that first kiss, much less anything more, gave credence to his desire for a lifelong relationship with the heroine.

Merry was a tad insecure having led a life of constantly moving to the next new church, new town, new school and never having time to solidify friendships. She was hesitant to believe Jarrett could want her for any true length of time. But when she opened herself up to hope, it was a beautiful thing.

This was a wonderfully well written book that dragged just a tad in spots. It definitely had a bit of a slow burn to it but once the fuse was lit this couple’s chemistry exploded across the page. However, the true gem of this story was what Jarrett does to win back his lady. I felt myself choking up over such an amazing thing.

This can be read as a standalone although it does contain scenes with the couple’s from the previous books. I highly recommend any of them.

This is an honest review of an advanced copy provided by NetGalley and Adams Media.

*I was given an ARC copy in NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
This hero didn't do it for me. I think he comes off as too opinionated and too focus on his wants and needs that he can't seem to understand what is really going on around him. I do like that the author shows this as a *bad* thing but it drags along into the main conflict of the book that shouldn't have been a conflict at all. The heroine starts a little weak but she pulls through after the conflict and I liked that. But overall, this one wasn't my cup of tea. I do like the author's style and I'm willing to try another books from her. With just one scene, my attention was focused on Thor and the team owner's daughter and I hope they get a book soon!

Third book in the Nashville Sound series brings us Jarrett "The Saint" and Merry Sweet, a preachers daughter. Sounds like the perfect match, right? Two highly respected people with good work ethics and morals. What could go wrong?

Jarrett has been in love with the idea of being in love for as long as he can remember. Why wouldn't he when he has had the perfect example in his own parents. Sadly, his father passed away when he was only 10 years old but he as always held the memories strong in his heart. I think having a child's view of such a strong love, he wasn't able to see that his parents were still human and were not perfect. So when it was time for him to search for his forever, he might have had high expectation for his future wife.

Being a preachers daughter, Merry has always felt like she stood on the outside of everything. Always included but never allowed to get too close. 2 years prior, when a guy she likes asks her on a ski trip with a group of wealthy kids, she really wants to go. She remembers a fellow college student telling her that she poses as a topless model for a Gentlemen's calendar to earn money for her tuition and has never been recognized. What's the risk if you don't get recognized? What she didn't know was that she was going to be chosen for the cover of the calendar.

I think you probably know what's going to happen when Jarret finds out about Merry's moment of bad decision. First, let me say that you know in the beginning of the story about what Merry did so this is not a spoiler to the story. I have very mixed feelings about Jarret in this book. I loved him when he was wooing Merry. Yes, he did some serious wooing! But when she fell from that pedestal, I guess he fell from his that I had put him on. In his own words "I am a sanctimonious, judgmental a**"

Sadly, his reaction put a bit of a damper on the story for me. I won't go into too much detail because it will be spoiling the end so I will just say that I forgave Jerret and was so happy to see these two get past that bump in the road. I also want to add that I get what the authors were doing here. The overall message the authors provided in this story was a very good one and still an issue in this day and age.

I am truly enjoying this series and look forward to the next couple. ARC provided by NetGalley.