Taking a Shot (A Play-by-Play Novel) Paperback – March 6, 2012

My Review:For me, this book was about so much more than simply a really hot romantic story line (although it definitely was that). This book was truly about Jenna and the fact that she's terrified to follow her dreams. Jenna is the female of the Riley siblings. While big brothers, Gavin and Mick, have been following their professional sports dreams, Jenna has taken over the running of the family sports bar. Honestly, she is sick of sports....only because it's all her life has been 24/7 for years. But the fact that she doesn't want anything to do with sports is actually indicative of a much deeper issue. Sports in Jenna's life are standing in the way of Jenna's dream of singing...a fact that none of her family is even aware of. They have no clue about her talent or passion of song-writing and singing.She has issues with sports in another area of her life too. She doesn't want to have anything to do with dating a guy who is into sports...kind of hard to do when you spend all day at a sports bar and every interaction in your life is based around sports. But she's determined and that's why she has no intention of giving into her attraction to Ty. Unfortunately for Jenna, as a pro hockey player, Ty really doesn't give up well and he's determined that he wants her.Ty has a few issues of his own when it comes to relationships, but honestly, a relationship isn't what he's looking for with Jenna. He just wants to explore what they can do with their combustible chemistry.I love sports themed books and I have to admit, hockey is one of my favorites. I loved the hockey aspect of this book and actually would have been happy if we could have even delved into the sport a little deeper, but I liked watching Ty as he struggles with his rocky relationship with Jenna at the same time he's trying to do what he needs to do on the ice to get his team to the play-offs. It was a fun and entertaining mix. Add to that, Jenna's singing ambitions and fears, and I was really pleased with the story line of this book. Yes, it's an erotic book with all the super-hot sex that you expect, but there is so much more to this story and it made for riveting reading.I liked the dynamic between the three women: Jenna, Tara, and Liz and the way that they all bonded through their love of these sports figures. These scenes in the book were really well-done and added a lot to the book. I also really loved the way Ty was constantly pushing Jenna to go for her dreams, even when she pushed right back at him telling him to shove it. She could be really bi**hy and he would simply back off for the moment. I loved that about his character.Overall, this was a really fantastic book. I enjoyed the story and the chemistry. The characters continue to be incredibly well-developed and this series continues to stay right up there as one of my favorites. I love these sports themed Jaci Burton books. She writes them so well!!

This was another sexy romance in the the Play-by-play series. The youngest Riley - Jenna - is running the family sports bar. She is in charge since her father's heart attack. Her brothers are busy with their new loves and their sports careers and Jenna is stuck. While she loves her family, she doesn't really love the bar. Too much sports and too many athletes for her. She is determined not to have a relationship with any guy into sports. It is hard to find a guy to date since she spends all of her time in a sports bar.Tyler Anderson is new in town. He plays pro hockey. He also gets under Jenna's skin. Even with her dislike of athletes, he has something. They have a powerful chemistry which Jenna tries to deny. However, they manage to hook up at her brother Mick's wedding. She thinks it will be just a one night stand to get her need for him out of her system but Ty isn't that eager to be gotten rid of.They enter into a relationship very tentatively. He doesn't have any faith in relationships and hasn't since his parents' acrimonious divorce when he was fourteen. She doesn't want a relationship with an athlete. But they do get to know each other outside of bed too and find that they are each fascinated by the other.Jenna shares a secret with him. She sings and writes songs but has never told her family. She has a dream of opening a second Riley's that focuses on music but feels she will disappoint her family by leaving the sports bar. Ty tries to encourage her to pursue her dreams but she is afraid of failure. Her fear of going for her dreams is the thing that causes the major tension in their relationship.This was a great romance and it was wonderful catching up with Mick and Tara, Liz and Gavin and the Riley parents. It is also great seeing Jenna work through her problems and decide to go for her dreams. It was very satisfying to see two strong, stubborn people decide that their relationship was worth the fight.This was another entertaining episode in a series that has very spicy intimate scenes and also strong romance. I recommend it to those romance readers who like their stories hot.

It was a nice book, I enjoyed it. 3.5 stars.My main issue is with the characterization. The physical chemistry with Tyler and Jenna is amazing. The smut scenes were great. And at first I was in love with how flirty, persistent while being respectful Tyler was. How balanced he was. Not a man-child à la Carter Beckett.But then, I got a bit annoyed at the lack of fun in their life and relationship. We never saw them really laughing, having fun and friendly banter. It was always serious conversation after serious conversation and it made it hard for me to believe in their story, because it felt a bit gloomy. I'm not necessarily asking for a full-on hello giggle rainbow-farting unicorn love story, because it's not coherent with the characters, but a bit of lightness here and there would have gone a long way for me.I however appreciate that it is totally down to what I like and dislike and nothing to do with the author's skill :)

This is the third book in the Play by Play series, the other two  The Perfect Play (Play-By-Play Novels (Heat))  and  Changing the Game (Play-By-Play Novels (Heat))  were definite five star reads. In this latest story I felt that a sound plot was missing. Yes the love scenes were hot and sexy. But the book lacked any real story, other than the fact that Jenna Riley hated sports and refused to date any guy who was involved with sports. Jenna ran her family's sports bar, she had been in charge since her father's heart problems. Jenna's two brothers Mick who was a football player, and Gavin was a baseball star. Meant that she ate slept worked and lived with sport. So she no way wanted to date a guy who played any sport for a living. That is until Tyler Anderson local ice hockey hero, came into the bar. The chemistry between them was electric. Jenna decides to get Ty out of her system she spends a really hot and sexy night with him.Jenna is a conflicted character in this story, she hates working at the family's sports bar, but does not have the courage to tell her family the truth, especially after her father's illness. I found her reason for not wanting to date Ty, a bit pathetic. Jenna wants to do something else with her life, she loves music and art. I really liked Ty he was a great character, he had so much patience with Jenna, her constant rejections of him would have put off a lesser man. I did wonder sometimes why he bothered as he freely admitted that she wasn't his usual type. But both of them were inexplicably drawn to one another.The next book in this series sounds fabulous and will feature the Riley family's cousin Cole Riley in  Playing to Win (Play-By-Play Novel) . The Perfect Play (Play-By-Play Novels (Heat))Changing the Game (Play-By-Play Novels (Heat))Playing to Win (Play-By-Play Novel)

The 3rd in the series and it still got me hot under the collar. I love this series of books. Don't read book this until you've read the first two. This book is all about Jenna. She's not into sports unlike her two brothers and she doesn't go for guys that are into sports. I liked the slight change in this book. These books can feel a bit samey but I loved the characters and wanted to find out about them. There are more books in this series and I'll definitely read them, but this has rounded off this family's story for me nicely.

I looked at this item a few times finally decided to purchase it but was disappointed. The characters are nice but there was not much of a story line and it dragged on. I have read much cheaper items which are much better stories. Sorry for bad write up but I think it is too expensive for quality of story.

great