Review: Score by Victoria Denault

This is the first book I have read by Victoria Denault and I was impressed.  From the first page to the last, this story has great flow and it grabbed me and never let me go.  It has wonderfully written dialogue, a delicious story, the characters feel genuine and the interactions between them are fun and flirty.  I loved every minute of this charming and fun story which is told from alternating POV’s, so I always know what the characters are thinking and feeling.

Jude Braddock is a professional hockey player with the San Francisco Thunder. Everything in Jude’s professional life is going well and he is excited his team has won the Stanley Cup, but things in his personal life are not going as well.

Zoey Quinlin’s life is in turmoil after undergoing  a messy divorce. She is starting over with a new job in residential real estate and her ex-husband enjoys giving her a difficult time. She misses the carefree person she used to be.  She would like to have some fun after her marriage ends and she decides Jude is the perfect person to do that with.

Jude and Zoey knew each other when they were teenagers and haven’t seen each other in eleven years. Jude is a womanizer and assumes he isn’t meant for long-term relationships, until he sees Zoey again.  I enjoyed watching their relationship build slowly and realistically.  I liked Jude and Zoey together.  They have fun and trust each other and also have lots of chemistry.  Jude stole my heart.  He  is sweet and vulnerable and he wants to be a better guy for Zoey but he also worries he may hurt her.  I love the way Jude grows into the man he is meant to be.  He helps Zoey feel more confident and Zoey helps Jude feel better about himself, too.

Jude’s three sisters are hilarious and add a lot of humor to the story.  He and his sisters are always bantering back and forth. They love to give Jude a hard time, they constantly tease him and don’t let his head get too big.  SCORE is a mix of sexiness, sweetness, and laughter.