Blog Tour Review: Taking Shots (Assassins #1) by Toni Aleo

Source: Received an egalley to participate in blog tour and for an honest review.

Publisher: Self-published

Release Date: Already released.

(Goodreads Link.)

Blurb from Goodreads:

Elli Fisher has never thought she was good enough. Let it be her job, her weight, her love life, nothing, she was convinced she couldn’t do anything right. She had walked through life for the past six years in a daze, never thinking that life could be good again after the abuse she endured from her ex boyfriend. She is lonely, sad, and depressed, that is until she meets Shea Adler. After doing a promotional shoot for the NHL team, the Nashville Assassins, she meets the hunky hockey player who shoots a puck, shattering her world. 

Shea Adler was tired of the life he was living outside of the rink. The girls, the money blowing, the drinking, everything had to stop and it all did when he met Eleanor Fisher. He had never met anyone like her. She is feisty, witty, shy, and simply gorgeous. When he laid eyes on her, it was as if he was taking the hardest hit of his life into the boards, and he had to have her. 

Elli is a little skeptical of Shea, but he knows that they were meant to be together, and he needed her in his life. But Elli just doesn’t understand what Shea could see in her. She is overweight, loud, and not even that pretty, so why would someone so gorgeous and so amazing want to be with her? It seemed that no matter how hard she tried to shake Shea off, he wasn’t going anywhere, and for the first time Elli didn’t feel alone. 

But could Elli throw her insecurities out the window and love Shea with everything inside of her? Or will she let a past relationship, and her family ruin any chance of her being happy?

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As I have mentioned before, I'm a sucker for romances involving athletes, and I have a particular soft spot for hockey players...I'm going to blame my Canadian nationality on that one, and also a particularly amazing fanfic that I read years ago where Edward Cullen was a hockey player...sigh. Don't laugh...I know you're laughing, it was fantastic! :P Anyway, Taking Shots managed to rekindle the love I have for sports romances...you may have noticed a steady rise in the number that I've been reading lately. :P While, it isn't a short story it's so addictive that you honestly won't want to stop reading...I didn't, and at the time that I read it, I seriously didn't have time to read...but I did anyway because it had me hooked!

I absolutely loved Shea, he was awesome, and I loved the relationship he had with his twin sister, it was so adorable! :D I really liked Elli too, but sometimes she got on my nerves. I understand second-guessing yourself, but Elli took it to an extreme. She'd have her mind made up, doubt herself, decide to do it again, then doubt herself and then doubt herself for doubting herself. It got a bit excessive. That being said, sometimes her fears were well-grounded, she had a rocky past, but I still found that sometimes it was a bit over-the-top. However, Elli's excessive doubts were the only qualms I had with the book, everything else was fantastic. I loved Shea, I loved when he and Elli were together (especially when she was just letting herself enjoy it all ;D), and I just loved this book in general.

One of the awesome things about Taking Shots is that there's actually hockey in it! I don't know about you, but I'm not a fan of reading sports romances when there's no sports in it, I get that the author might want to focus on the romance rather than the sport, but what's the point in making the hero an athlete if there are no sports! Toni Aleo handles the sports aspect superbly! Elli is a mega fan of hockey, she has boxed seats, and she happened to be a big fan of Shea's prior to meeting him...her shrine of Shea was pretty hilarious once she actually met him. :P But, I loved that hockey was an actual focus in Taking Shots, and I loved how Elli was so into the game! :D

Along with hockey and the fabulous characters, I actually enjoyed the drama surrounding Taking Shots. Elli's past was heartbreaking, but it was also empowering to see her doing something that she was passionate about and working her butt of to run her business. :) With the exception of her awesome dad and uncle, her family was pretty terrible, and I liked that Elli's family dynamics actually had a purpose in the story...I won't tell you how, but it leads to some major drama. Finally, I loved how the book ended, it was such a sweet ending, and I was extremely happy with how everything worked out in the end.

I'd recommend Taking Shots to anyone who has a soft spot for athletes, especially buff ones with really pretty eyes, and who likes kids...seriously Shea's pretty much perfect. ;) Also, if you're interested in trying out a sports romance and haven't read one before this would be a good chance to start, it's primarily available on ebook, so it's an inexpensive way to get a great read and try out the genre. :D

Purchase Links:
Amazon: UK / US
Barnes and Noble

You can find the rest of the stops on the Assassins Series Blog Tour HERE.

How do you feel about athletes and sports romances?
Too much muscle for you, or can you never get enough? ;)
Anyone else have a serious soft spot for romances with sexy athletes...or is it just me? :P