Wednesday's Warriors: Aloha to Tracy Solheim and SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY

The author of Risky Game returns with a football team owner who’s a real player, and the woman who’s ready to call him out on everything...

Dot-com millionaire Jay McManus is discovering that owning a pro football team like the Baltimore Blaze isn’t easy. An anonymous blogger is out to destroy his reputation, and now his team is being sued by its own cheerleaders. If Jay’s not careful, he could lose big—and not just financially.

Bridgett Janik’s brother may play for the Baltimore Blaze, but she’s not thrilled to be defending Jay McManus, the man who broke her heart. It’s bad enough she has to mingle with Jay during games, but working beside her former lover may be too much for her body—and her heart—to resist.

Jay’s determined not to let Bridgett slip away from him a second time. But, as the two follow the mysterious blogger’s trail, secrets—both past and present—are revealed, and Jay and Bridgett must decide if their relationship can be something more than just sleeping with the enemy.

 Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Tracy Solheim brings the tailgate party to Charm City just in time for football season! Let's play Seven Degrees of Separation ...

1. On this day in 1912, Arthur Rose Eldred received the first rank of Eagle Scout from the Boy Scouts of America. Eldred later enlisted in the US Navy during WWI.

2. Eagle Scout James Lovell graduated from the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD.  He later became a Naval aviator and Apollo 13 astronaut.

3. James Lovell is portrayed by Tom Hanks in APOLLO 13.

4. Tom Hanks was inducted in the US Army Ranger Hall of Fame for his portrayal of Captain Miller in SAVING PRIVATE RYAN.

5. US Army Ranger alumni include football player Alejandro Villanueva.

6. Alejandro Villanueva played college football for the United States Military Academy (Westpoint) Black Nights.

7. Each year, the Black Nights challenge the Midshipmen in the celebrated Army Navy game.  Baltimore hosted the Army Navy game six times, including last year's victory for Navy, 17-10. 

I am currently enjoying the Baltimore set SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY - look for my review this coming weekend. Meanwhile, I am giving away the first three books in the Out of Bounds series - GAME ON, FOOLISH GAMES, and RISKY GAME - to one randomly selected commenter. To enter the giveaway,

1. Leave a comment about football - do you have a favorite team from high school, college, or professional leagues? Now that my son is attending the University of South Florida, I'll be rooting for the Bulls!

2. Comments are open through Saturday, September 5, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winner on Sunday, September 6.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

1908 Army-Navy college football game at Franklin Field.
Library of Congress - Public Domain

Aloha to Tracy Solheim and RISKY GAME - Release Day Launch

It's game day at Berkley Romance with Tracy Solheim's RISKY GAME:

Just when he was at the top of his game… She changed the rules.

Baltimore Blaze tight-end Brody Janik is a natural born football star. At twenty-seven, his record-breaking athletic performance and his cover-boy good looks have turned him into a household name. But Brody’s hiding a major secret behind his charming, public persona: a health condition that may cut his career short.

PhD candidate Shannon ‘Shay’ Everett works multiple jobs to put herself through school—including an unpaid internship with the Blaze training department. Strapped for cash, Shay answers the call of a NFL gossip blogger to uncover personal details about the Blaze players. Sneaking into the locker room one night, she gets entangled in Brody’s secret… and swept up by his charm.

Brody isn’t sure what to make of the gawky girl with the whiskey eyes, especially when he discovers she was snooping. His first instinct is to turn her in as a snitch, but she could destroy him by sharing his secret. Instead, he decides to keep her close… perhaps closer than either of them originally intended…

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books A Million
Indie Bound
Powell’s Books

Check out my five star review on Goodreads at this link.

Author Tracy Solheim has written her share of best sellers and note-worthy books. Unfortunately most of them line the shelves of dusty government offices around the world never to see the light of day. She hopes to change that with her series of contemporary romantic fiction novels published by Berkley Books.

“I guess you could say I’m a frustrated sports writer at heart, but I love writing—and reading—books centered around sports. I can thank my dad for that. He introduced me to Dick Francis novels when I was a teenager and I was hooked. I am also a big fan of the happily ever after endings of romance novels, so it was only natural that I combined the two elements in my fiction debut.”

To find out more about Tracy Solheim, visit her at:

Website: tracysolheim.com
Facebook: facebook.com/TracySolheimBooks
Twitter: twitter.com/TracyKSolheim
Goodreads: link

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Aloha to Tracy Solheim and RISKY GAME - Book Review

Several months ago, I received my sorority alumni magazine, which included a shout out to published authors among the alumni rank. I noticed one name, Tracy Solheim, who I featured at this link for FOOLISH GAMES. I contacted Tracy, we swapped emails about college life, and I learned she is an Air Force brat - term of endearment for military children. She asked if I would like to review her next book, RISKY GAME, set in Baltimore. Could the stars align any more for us?

Tracy may be a sorority sister, may have served as a military brat, and may have set her book in my new home town, but she had to win me over as I infrequently read contemporary romance, let along contemporary romance featuring sports characters. Indeed, she did win me over - I posted a five star review on Goodreads at this link.   RISKY GAME is available tomorrow, May 6, from Berkley Romance:

Baltimore Blaze tight end Brody Janik is a natural-born football star. At twenty-seven, his record-breaking athletic performance and his cover-boy good looks have turned him into a household name. But Brody’s hiding a major secret behind his charming public persona: a health condition that may cut his career short.

PhD candidate Shannon “Shay” Everett works multiple jobs to put herself through school—including an unpaid internship with the Blaze training department. Strapped for cash, Shay answers the call of an NFL gossip blogger to uncover personal details about the Blaze players. Sneaking into the locker room one night, she gets entangled in Brody’s secret…and swept up by his charm.

Brody isn’t sure what to make of the gawky girl with the whiskey eyes, especially when he discovers she was snooping. His first instinct is to turn her in as a snitch, but she could destroy him by sharing his secret. Instead, he decides to keep her close…perhaps closer than either of them originally intended…

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books A Million
Indie Bound
Powell’s Books

A family is a risky venture, because the greater the love, the greater the loss... That's the trade-off. But I'll take it all. – Brad Pitt

Football star Brody Janik shares many attributes with Brad Pitt – he is sexy, he is driven, and and he has a big family. Instead of Brady’s six children, Brody has three sisters whom he adores. He is at the height of his athletic career and yet he hides a secret … a secret Shannon “Shay” Everett overhears in the locker room. She could use the cash that this secret would generate from the tabloids. Instead, Shay offers to help Brody overcome it while opening her heart to him.

Solheim delivers an emotional yet romantic romp into today’s modern sports machine. I laughed along with Shay’s antics, Brody’s charm, and his sisters’ interference as the Golden Boy comes to terms with his own limitations while the independent intern realizes that it is okay to accept help, even love, from someone else.

RISKY GAME is Book Three in Solheim’s OUT OF BOUNDS series. Characters from the previous books appear as the supporting cast but allow Brody and Shay to shine on their own. I have not read the previous books (something that I will correct) yet I was able to follow along the storyline.

Recommended read for fans of contemporary settings, sports themes, and Baltimore!

I received an ARC from the author for an honest review.

Baltimore Inner Harbor 

I am giving away a "Baltimore" prize package to one randomly selected commenter.  To enter the giveaway,

1.  Leave a comment about Baltimore - what do you know about it?

2.  Comments are open through Saturday, May 10, 10 pm in Baltimore.  

3.  I'll post the winners on Sunday, May 11.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Learn more about Tracy and her books at tracysolheim.com.