He knows every play in the book. But she’s calling the shots. “An epic story of the one that got away—Maddox will totally surprise readers in a lovely, lovely way.”—Sawyer Bennett I’m Maddox Ledger, all-star winger and the reason the Charlotte Strikers killed it in the playoffs. Yeah, the tabloids like to call me arrogant. A real hothead. All I see is a guy who plays to win. Wreaking havoc on the … plays to win. Wreaking havoc on the ice, breaking a few hearts—that’s all just part of the game. And I’m sure as hell not sitting on the bench.
When my teammate asks me to be in his wedding party, I can’t refuse. Lucky for me, the bridesmaid I’m paired with is the definition of eye candy, but she’s so much more than that. Lacey Easton is totally irresistible and she makes me want to be a better man. A glimpse of bare shoulder takes me back to a steamy, two-week Vegas tryst I can’t forget. One I’m eager to repeat.
Suddenly our one-night stand is turning into the sequel. Still, Lacey’s keeping secrets. She doesn’t trust me. And maybe I deserve it. But I know more than she thinks I do and there’s no chance I’m letting her get away—or letting another guy take what is mine. This time, I’m playing for keeps.
Praise for Playmaker
“This is a second-chance romance mixed with sexiness and sweetness. The characters are genuine and the story endearing.”—Cocktails and Books
“Playmaker is entertaining, sexy, and fun. L.P. Dover brought together a really good plot, strong characters, heat, humor, conflict, family, and friendships. Ms. Dover continues to build on a great cast of characters in the players, their families, and their friends.”—Harlequin Junkie
“I love when I get completely lost in a book, and I definitely got lost in Maddox and Lacey’s story.”—Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews (five stars)
“Nonstop action, plenty of romance, lots of drama, and a hint of intrigue to sweep you off your feet.”—Kristen’s Book Jungle
“[Playmaker] fit well into the Breakaway series, but can be read as a standalone.”—OMG Reads
Don’t miss any of New York Times bestselling author L. P. Dover’s red-hot Breakaway novels:
HARD STICK | BLOCKED | PLAYMAKER
Or these heartwarming Second Chances romances:
CATCHING SUMMER | DEFENDING HAYDEN | INTENDED FOR BRISTOL
This ebook includes an excerpt from another Loveswept title.
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Playmaker is book 3 in the Breakaway Series and for me this is the best Book so far, I have only read this series by L.P. Dover and I’m struggling to understand why I haven’t read any of her other books..
What can you say about Maddox Ledger apart from he is what we all believe hot hockey players are he is arrogant, sexy, a guy who plays to win with no room for relationships, he wreaks havoc on the ice and he breaks hearts….. Lacey Easton is the bridesmaid I’m paired with at a friend and teammates wedding, she is stunning and vaguely familiar, a glimpse of her bare shoulder takes me back to steamy night in Vegas a night I could never forget and I wonder has she forgotten……
What follows is a man trying to prove he is not the playboy the tabloids paint him to be, a man trying to prove his love for a girl who doesn’t trust him and I have to say my heart got broken just a little bit every time Lacey pushed him away. I loved how we got to see the real Maddox and I loved how he didn’t give up on Lacey. This book could be read as a stand-alone but I think you would get a lot more out of it if you read the previous books first. A beautifully written love story and if you love hockey players this is a must read series !!!!!
I finished this second chance, sports romance with mixed feelings. On the surface, the story is a bit different than most of the genre in that Maddox and Lacey are married when they get their second chance, and there are some interesting characters throughout the book. So, while the bones of the story are good, what started as a promising story line came up a bit lacking. I loved Maddox. He’s a little broken but knows what he wants and is willing to do the work to get there. However, Lacey is an irksome combination of hot and cold. Throughout most of the book, she bounces back and forth between wanting to make the relationship work and having no faith in Maddox whatsoever. Several times, she would say that it wasn’t going to work while her actions would completely negate those words. While Maddox has some self-worth issues, most of the angst for this pair comes from Lacey’s continuous back and forth along with a couple of outside sources that were more distraction than anything else. About fifty percent of this romance is Lacey pulling away while Maddox chases and jumps through hoops to show her how he feels. We do eventually see some character growth with Lacey and things start coming together, but in the end, it just didn’t have that stand out something to make me want to root for this couple, making it just an okay read for me.
I knew this was going to go….(Can’t tell you)
I assumed a lot after reading Hard Stick. I snatched up a copy of Blocked but have yet to read it. So I may have been in the dark about somethings, but I remember others.
Playmaker is the squealing, happy fan girl for bad boys story. In translation,everyone who loves second chances for the bad boy- this is your book. It doesn’t hurt that he’s a gorgeous, ripped hockey player. Oh and he’s madly in love with his…girl.
Even though its the 3rd in the series, it can be read as a way to break into the series. Personally, I need all the facts and am annoyed at myself I didn’t get to Blocked first but I know I will enjoy it anyway.
I can’t wait to see my guy Braeden finally his chance. Hopefully with many more hockey hotties to come!
This book is full of surprises. Right from the beginning, the author was throwing out things that I could not have seen coming!
Maddox is a bad boy hockey player. He’s a playboy, and not a favorite of his teammates. He doesn’t always make the best decisions. When he sets his sights on Lacey, he has to prove that he isn’t who he appears to be and he’s worth her time.
Lacey is a good girl. She’s in medical school, and works hard. She’s not sure if she can give Maddox what he wants, that she can be what he wants.
I love how persistent Maddox is. Both Maddox and Lacey make mistakes, but Maddox is determined to make a relationship between them work, despite the obstacles in their way. He does everything possible to make Lacey see things from his point of view.
I’ve enjoyed all of the books that I’ve read by L. P. Dover, and this is no exception. It is well written, interesting, and the characters are engaging. The banter between Maddox and Lacey kept me smiling, and I can’t wait to see what happens next in this series!
Yummy read by L.P. Dover. “Playmaker” is such an awesome read. The model on the cover is so Maddox!!!
The review is up at http://desireforlit.com/2018/02/08/playmaker-lp-dover/
Myn
Both Maddox and Lacey appeared in earlier books. Maddox was going through a hard time, considering quitting hockey and went to Vegas. His cousin Callie, ask her friend to go check on him and they spent 2 weeks together, falling in love and got married by “Elvis”. However, Lacey did not tell him her real name or who she was (the sister of one of his teammates) and the morning after they were married, took off with the marriage license and wedding rings. Maddox hired a PI to find her. For 2 years he tried to make her jealous, by appearing in front of the paparazzi with different woman on his arm, but now they will both be in Charlotte for Callie and Dallas’s wedding and Maddox is not going to wait any more. Will they take a chance on their marriage or will Callie’s best friend, Braeden, who is in love with her himself, try to keep them apart?
As in all the books that I have read by this author, the characters are all well developed and engaging. The plots are similar in that there always seems to be a “villain” who wants to keep the “lovers” apart, fails and sometimes reforms enough to get his own book. I also like the occasional reference to the SECOND CHANCES characters.
I read an advanced copy from netgalley.com and highly recommend this book and the rest of the author’s collection.
While I enjoy the Breakaway series, this one left me feeling like I had missed some of the story or like a puzzle with some missing pieces. While the prologue certainly grabs your attention, I was hoping for a little more background as to how Maddox and Lacey fell in love. And why did Lacey just take off leaving Maddox the way she did? For being a medical student, her behavior seemed both immature and impulsive. Was there a specific incident in her life before meeting Maddox that led her to having trust issues? True, Maddox’s attempt to make Lacey jealous and come forward after she left by being photographed with different women was also immature, but after they got back together he repeatedly showed her in different ways that she could trust him. And yet shE seemed clueless about how her relationship with her best friend, Braeden (who is one of Maddox’s teammates), might make Maddox feel jealous until quite late in the story…kind of a “pot calling the kettle” type of deal!
But if you can overlook Lacey’s immaturity/insecurity, there is a good story here.
This is the first book I have read by this author, but it surely won’t be the last. This is the lovely story of Maddox and Lacey (Paige). This was a sweet, quick read with all the best elements of a romance. I liked the sports aspect, being a hockey fan. Maddox being a star player for the Carolina Strikers and Lacey, the sister to one of Maddox’s team mates. The secondary characters were fantastic, in fact, I plan on introducing myself to those characters in her other books! Well written, well done!