Squeeze Play by Kate Angell
Jun. 18th, 2006 07:51 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jmc_bksCurveball:
Getting thrown for a loop whevever
Jacy Grayson was near him.
Throwing heat:
Being around a vixen hotter than the steaming
coffee she served at Jacy’s Java.
Home run:
Having the woman of his dreams say “yes.”
Play Ball:
Risk Kincaid was finding out that the life of a pro baseball player wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. The fame, the fortune, the fans – what good were they when he kept striking out with the one woman who really matter to him? Jacy Grayson was sassy and spirited, but she only saw him as her rebound lover – the man who picked up the pieces when her heart was broken. Yet Risk had never stepped down from the plate before, and he certainly wasn’t going to start now. The bases were loaded – all Risk needed to do was show her that the diamond he had in mind wasn’t found on a baseball field.
Why did I pick this book? I liked the cartoony cover, plus the fact that it has a sports theme. Plus, I finished my commute book on the morning ride in and needed a new one for the ride home.
How was the cover? Cartoony, with primary colors. Eye catching and kind of cute.
Did I enjoy the book? It was okay, not awful but also not stellar. The book opens in game seven of the World Series, with Risk Kincaid at bat. He does the whole Robert Redford-The Natural thing, pointing to the outfield where he’s planning on hitting the ball. Okay, whatever, copycat.
Immediately after the WS, Risk heads home to Frostproof, Florida, to see Jacy and to participate in a charity event to raise money for a town park/rec. He and Jacy have been each other’s “rebound” lovers since high school. Well, really, fake rebound lovers. He seldom dates, but shows up when she needs him, after breaking up with whomever she’s been dating. Except she hasn’t really been dating -- every so often, she makes up a breakup and call him; he shows up for an overnighter or a weekend, then goes back to Richmond, where the team is. But he’s decided that’s not enough and he’s going to establish a real relationship with Jacy. Which is fine, but since there is no real conflict, just a sophomoric inability or unwillingness to speak to each other and bare their hearts, it takes most of the book to get to that. Lots of mental lusting and some hot sex.
There are two subplots going on, both involving baseball players. One is Zen Driscoll, teammate of Risk, who accompanies him to Frostproof. He falls for Stevie Cole, who has been hung up forever on Aaron Grayson, another baseball player and character in the 3rd subplot. Aaron has been weaning himself away from Frostproof and Stevie, and the charity event seems to be a last hurrah for him in town. [ETA: Afterthought: having just worked on a charity event, I thought some of the bidding amounts from the townspeople were unrealistic. Maybe it is just a matter of community wealth, but the idea of the average person paying thousands of dollars (as opposed to hundreds maybe) for a date at a bachelor auction seemed over the top. Of course, my charity event was different; maybe people are willing to pay more to date a baseball player than for a cruise or a golf weekend or the use of a beach house.]
I liked Angell’s voice, and Squeeze Play wasn’t bad . . . but in the end it was only so-so. Too much going on, not enough plot or character development. If I’m wrapped up in a story, I’ll let little things slide, but when I’m bored, they become noticeable and irritate. That’s what happened here. The nicknames of the players were supposed to be macho, but really they were too much – Risk; Zen; Psycho; Romeo, etc. Jacy’s business, Jacy’s Java, was ridiculous and pornographic, not to mention unhygienic. Maybe small town coffee shops are different from the Starbucks and Caribou Coffees that I’ve been to, but sugar and “blows” during rush hour wouldn’t really work. And the appearance of the Bat Pack (three young players) screams series set up to me.
Would I recommend this book? Only with major qualifiers.
Keep or pass on? Pass on.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-19 10:01 am (UTC)Tara (romancereadingmom.blogspot.com)
no subject
Date: 2006-06-19 12:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-19 02:52 pm (UTC)Jane at dearauthor.com
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Date: 2006-06-20 01:55 am (UTC)Tara
kate angell books
Date: 2007-04-11 12:42 pm (UTC)kate angell
Date: 2007-04-11 12:50 pm (UTC)i've just ordered the book you 're talkingabout. But the salesperson told me it'll take 2 to 6 weeks. (It has to beimported because i live in Germany) If someone could tell me a little more bout it i'd be pleased.
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-11 01:39 pm (UTC)But for other perspectives, check here (http://www.likesbooks.com/cgi-bin/bookReview.pl?BookReviewId=5731) and here (http://dearauthor.com/wordpress/2006/06/08/squeeze-play-by-kate-angell/).
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-17 04:26 pm (UTC)PS:Sorry if there are any mistakes in my text because i'm a native German but love to read American books. Honestly, they're much better than the German ones.
Another question: Do you regularly frequent this website?
Bye bye
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-17 04:49 pm (UTC)just a short note:
you don't have to answer the question if you regularly frequent this page. I've just browsed through it and learned some interesting things about you. like the thirteen things you'd like to do.
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-17 06:40 pm (UTC)I'm not sure what Curveball will be about -- I haven't looked for it online or in the bookstore.
Your English is fine!
Cheers,
jmc
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-18 04:09 pm (UTC)wie geht's? (that's German and means "how are you")
thanks for your answer and your compliment. was pleased to hear that my English is fine :)
Since you seem to read lots of stuff: Is there one book you could highly recommend cause I don't know what to read next. And I wanna read one cause I'd like to improve my English. (Seeing me sitting in front of the computer with a translator in my hand, that'd tickle you to death).
Now a personal question; How many languages do you speak? Me, I speak German, of course (the city where I live is near Nürnberg), English (Thanks to American books) and French. And I'd like to learn Spanish as soon as possible.
See you later
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-18 11:37 pm (UTC)I'm fine, thank you. How are you? Do you have a nickname that I should use to address you? It feels rude to not include a name when I respond to you.
One book I would highly recommend? Hard to narrow down to just one.
*For a romance that is classic fiction, Jane Austen's Persuasion.
*For fantasy and only a tiny romance thread, Lois McMaster Bujold's The Curse of Chalion.
Both of these have been translated into German, so you could probably read them in English with a German copy of each to compare.
*For contemporary romance, I like anything written by Jennifer Crusie, but especially Anybody But You, Welcome to Temptation and Bet Me.
*For adventure or romantic suspense, Suzanne Brockmann's Over the Edge.
If you have a particular type that you prefer, let me know and I'll see if I can think of a favorite read to recommend. Are you new to reading romance? There are a lot of helpful web sites with suggestions and reviews: some of them are linked in my sidebar.
On the language front, I speak Spanish and read it; I can read and speak a little bit of Russian; and I am learning Arabic.
Cheers,
jmc
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-19 01:40 pm (UTC)I'm fine, thanks. Hope you're doing even better. Thank you for your recommendations. after reading them I immediately checked the books you were talking about. I think I am going to order one from jennifer crusie. Which one do you prefer: bet me or anybody but you? Unfortunately, it'll take up to 7weeks till I get it. Sometimes I really hate living in Germany ;(
I think you are right that it sounds a little bit strange if you don't know a nickname to address me. So call me vero, please. (By the way, sorry for not telling you; I simply forgot)
The type of books I prefer is sports romance. Like Carly Phillip's Hot Zone triology. Do you know those books? All three have generally the same basics but I enjoy reading them neverthless. It is a light and entertaining read, exactly what I need after a strenuous working day. Can you recommend a book that centers around jocks? What do you prefer reading? Or do you read anything?
If I'm new to reading romance? Yes, I am. But now I relish it the more.
Now another question: Could you please explain what the expressions "she sweetened the pot" and "he breached no wiggle room" mean? I've already searched through every dictionary I own but haven't found the meaning. Would be great, thanks in advance.
I really admire you for reading and speaking Russian. It's a pretty difficult language, isn't it? They even have different letters. like Chinese. Got to go now, my sister's calling.
See you,
vero
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-21 03:17 pm (UTC)Mmm, which do I like better, Anyone But You or Bet Me? Well, I like different things about them. Anyone But You is a very tightly written category romance. Bet Me is a longer book with more American pop culture references. Anyone But You would probably be an easier, faster read...but it will likely be more expensive, because it is a hardback book, while Bet Me is available in paperback. You can't go wrong with either one, I think.
I haven't read Carly Phillips before. I have read and enjoyed other sports books, though. Have you read Rachel Gibson's books with ice hockey heroes? Deirdre Martin has also written several books with ice hockey heroes. Susan Elizabeth Phillips has written several books set in the American football world. Other older category romances: Calling the Shots by Kathy Alerding (hockey); A Man Like Mac by Faye Robinson (running); The Heart Mender by Kathleen Creighton (baseball); Scoring by Kristin Hardy (baseball). All About Romance has a list of more sports-related romances here (http://www.likesbooks.com/sports.html).
"Sweetening the pot" means to provide enticement or temptation. For example: the customer was reluctant to pay that price, so the vendor sweetened the pot by adding a few more extras to the package. "He breached no wiggle room" seems strange to me -- how was it being used? Wiggle room generally means room to maneuver or extra space. Use colloquially, it means leaving a gap so you can go back and edit or change things. For example: we set the schedule at 8 hours -- we believe that the work can be accomplished in 7 hours, but we left some wiggle room in case of a miscalculation.
For me Russian was harder to learn than Spanish because of the cases, which English and Spanish don't have; the alphabet wasn't too different. I'm finding Arabic to be the much more difficult language to master.
Cheers,
jmc
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-04-29 09:48 am (UTC)Sorry for not answering, but everything is pretty stressy at the moment. Hope you're doing fine. Thanks for your answer.
Now I have a long list to go through to decide which book I'd like to read. Are there books from this list you've already read?
I've read one book by Rachel Gibson . The one called see Jane score. But I read it in German. I've also read a lot of football books by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Don't know the English names cause I read those in German too. The books by Carly Phillips were the first I ordered in English. But it takes pretty long to get them and that annoys me a little bit cause when I order a book I'd like to read it short after and not half a year later (a little bit exagerated but almost the truth):(
Which books are you reading at the moment? Do you enjoy them?
See you,
vero
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-05-01 02:53 pm (UTC)I think I've read most of that list. I liked SEP's It Had to Be You best, though.
Right now I'm reading non-fiction: Blackwater: Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army. When I finish it, I'll probably start Kalen Hughes' debut historical Lord Sin or a western historical by Maggie Osbourne.
Cheers,
jmc
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-05-03 03:30 pm (UTC)sounds to me like you read loads of books.Unfortunately, I don't have that much time. If I had, I'd devour uncountable books a day cause reading is oneof my favorite hobbies. As I can see from your text, you don't just read romance but others as well.
What was It had to be you about? I think I know it but I'm not sure cause I only know the German titles of SEP's books. Maybe I've already read it, too.
Bye bye
Vero
PS: If there are any mistakes in my text, you can correct me any time.
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-05-04 07:12 pm (UTC)I do read a lot, in part because I have a fairly long commute to and from work. While on the train, I read.
It Had to Be You is about American football. Phoebe Somerville inherits a football team when her father dies. By the terms of his Will, she must run the organization. She and the coach, Dan Calebow, strike sparks off each other. Each is the epitome of what the other does not like. Phoebe thinks Dan is a brainless athlete, while Dan thinks Phoebe is a thoughtless sexpot who will ruin his team. They have to learn to work together and like each other. There is more to it than that, but that is the heart of the story.
Cheers,
jmc
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-05-06 02:33 pm (UTC)thanks for telling me. Now I know for sure that I have already read it. I even bought it, but the German version.
How long does it take you to get to work? And where do you live and where's your place of work? I don't want to be curious but I'm really interested. Do you have a stressful working day?
Now enough questions. Won't bother you anymore.
bye
Veronika
Re: kate angell
Date: 2007-05-07 07:08 pm (UTC)My commute is about an hour -- a 20 minute drive followed by a 40 minute train ride. So I get to read in the morning and evening, no matter what.
Work is...work. It's no more or less stressful than average, I think. There are things I like about my job and things I don't.
Cheers,
jmc