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Portland Pioneers #1
The Lucky Charm
Librarian's Note: An alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here and here
IT’S THE BOTTOM OF THE NINTH . . .
Izzy Dalton’s about to strike out. Her new job as the sideline reporter for the Portland Pioneers major league baseball team is problematic on several levels:
1. Baseball is her least-favorite sport. Falling behind golf, tennis, and maybe even curling.
2. What Izzy knows about baseball could fill about three minutes of airtime.
3. Her last experience in front of a camera was in college. Six years ago.
4. The Pioneers’ second baseman has a wicked sense of humor and even wickeder blue eyes.
AND A FULL COUNT. . .
Jack Bennett couldn’t be more uninterested in a little sideline action. He just wants to show up at the park and win baseball games. Izzy is the one woman he should steer clear of, but she’s also the key to his success–and his heart, too.
All Izzy has to do is convince her misogynistic boss she’s competent, learn what the heck an RBI is, and stay away from Jack Bennett. Izzy tells herself it’ll be a snap, but 162 games is longer than she ever imagined and Jack more irresistible than she counted on.
IT’S THE BOTTOM OF THE NINTH . . .
Izzy Dalton’s about to strike out. Her new job as the sideline reporter for the Portland Pioneers major league baseball team is problematic on several levels:
1. Baseball is her least-favorite sport. Falling behind golf, tennis, and maybe even curling.
2. What Izzy knows about baseball could fill about three minutes of airtime.
3. Her last experience in front of a camera was in college. Six years ago.
4. The Pioneers’ second baseman has a wicked sense of humor and even wickeder blue eyes.
AND A FULL COUNT. . .
Jack Bennett couldn’t be more uninterested in a little sideline action. He just wants to show up at the park and win baseball games. Izzy is the one woman he should steer clear of, but she’s also the key to his success–and his heart, too.
All Izzy has to do is convince her misogynistic boss she’s competent, learn what the heck an RBI is, and stay away from Jack Bennett. Izzy tells herself it’ll be a snap, but 162 games is longer than she ever imagined and Jack more irresistible than she counted on.
329 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 4, 2014
About the author
Beth Bolden
58 books509 followersA lifelong Oregonian, Beth Bolden has just recently moved to North Carolina with her supportive husband and their sweet kitten, Earl Grey. Beth still believes in Keeping Portland Weird, and intends to be just as weird in Raleigh.
Beth has been writing practically since she learned the alphabet. Unfortunately, her first foray into novel writing, titled Big Bear with Sparkly Earrings, wasn’t a bestseller, but hope springs eternal. She’s published fourteen novels and five short stories.
Beth has been writing practically since she learned the alphabet. Unfortunately, her first foray into novel writing, titled Big Bear with Sparkly Earrings, wasn’t a bestseller, but hope springs eternal. She’s published fourteen novels and five short stories.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
May 8, 2014
Jane from Dear Author recommended this to me. I've been on a sports romance kick lately and I'm so glad I read this one. I will say it took me a few chapters for me to warm up to our hero and heroine, but I ended up really enjoying them. The hero especially becomes quite adorable.
Izzy Dalton loves journalism behind the camera, but when her boss and mentor gets pushed into an early retirement, Izzy finds herself being shipped off as a sideline reporter to Portland's Major League Baseball team, The Pioneers. First, Izzy knows nothing, and I mean nothing about baseball. Second, she is rigid and pretty horrible as a reporter behind the camera, and finally to make this situation even more miserable, the Pioneers are a pretty bad team with about zero interest from the city.
Jack Bennett plays second base for the Pioneers and is a good player; cocky and stubborn, but a very hard worker. He is known to play games with people for his own amusement, so when Izzy's boss pushes her onto the field for some preseason interviews, he warns her to stay away from Jack until she has some practice under her belt. But she can't. Jack's best friend on the team is Noah, who is a ham for the fans and camera, and Jack just happens to tag along and can't help but notice the sexy new reporter. Izzy may not be great with the camera on her, but that doesn't mean she lacks journalism skills. She soon has some background dirt on Jack, and has to decide if she should run with that story. It's a long baseball season - and these two are going to chase each other around the bases, until Jack slides into...home.
Like I said at the beginning of this review, it took me a few chapters to get into this book. But after a while, the flow becomes steadier and I really got into this one. I don't know if I'd call Jack grumpy, but he is a little surly and unpredictable. He likes Izzy from the beginning, but doesn't always sugarcoat his words. He has a very fun relationship with his buddy Noah, who pushes him to ask Izzy out, even after she declines since it's a conflict with her job. Izzy is used to living and breathing work, but being a reporter and traveling with a baseball team really takes it out of her. She is so nervous and uptight about learning the sport of baseball, that Jack just looks at her and shakes his head. She carries around note cards with baseball definitions on them and Jack can barely stand it. So they become friends. He teaches her about the game - the nuances on the field, the atmosphere, the strategy, and ever so slowly, Izzy is enthralled.
The best part is, Jack becomes this adorable hero. It really surprised me. He becomes such a supporting figure for her - giving her confidence around every turn or giving her a hard time to get her to laugh when needed.
"I'm still not great on air. I stumble or ramble and I never look right."
Jack stopped in front of her and settled back on his heels so he was at her eye level.
"Isabel Dalton, I know you can do this. I know you can beat this. You're strong and certain and so damn smart."
The tiniest hint of a smile was beginning to peek out of the corners of her lips, so he continued. He just wanted to see her really smile again. Even the smile that she used to wrap him around her little finger.
And yet Jack is facing some vulnerabilities too with the rumor the team might be sold to a different city. Much weight rides on his shoulders. And of course as the title dictates - the lucky charm. It seems every time Jack talks baseball with Izzy, that night at the game, something crazy good goes his way. He swears he isn't superstitious, but damn if he can't shake his luck.
The physical romance is quite slow to build, but the pacing never felt off. It all builds up very well to a romantic ending. Give this one a try.
Rating: B
Izzy Dalton loves journalism behind the camera, but when her boss and mentor gets pushed into an early retirement, Izzy finds herself being shipped off as a sideline reporter to Portland's Major League Baseball team, The Pioneers. First, Izzy knows nothing, and I mean nothing about baseball. Second, she is rigid and pretty horrible as a reporter behind the camera, and finally to make this situation even more miserable, the Pioneers are a pretty bad team with about zero interest from the city.
Jack Bennett plays second base for the Pioneers and is a good player; cocky and stubborn, but a very hard worker. He is known to play games with people for his own amusement, so when Izzy's boss pushes her onto the field for some preseason interviews, he warns her to stay away from Jack until she has some practice under her belt. But she can't. Jack's best friend on the team is Noah, who is a ham for the fans and camera, and Jack just happens to tag along and can't help but notice the sexy new reporter. Izzy may not be great with the camera on her, but that doesn't mean she lacks journalism skills. She soon has some background dirt on Jack, and has to decide if she should run with that story. It's a long baseball season - and these two are going to chase each other around the bases, until Jack slides into...home.
Like I said at the beginning of this review, it took me a few chapters to get into this book. But after a while, the flow becomes steadier and I really got into this one. I don't know if I'd call Jack grumpy, but he is a little surly and unpredictable. He likes Izzy from the beginning, but doesn't always sugarcoat his words. He has a very fun relationship with his buddy Noah, who pushes him to ask Izzy out, even after she declines since it's a conflict with her job. Izzy is used to living and breathing work, but being a reporter and traveling with a baseball team really takes it out of her. She is so nervous and uptight about learning the sport of baseball, that Jack just looks at her and shakes his head. She carries around note cards with baseball definitions on them and Jack can barely stand it. So they become friends. He teaches her about the game - the nuances on the field, the atmosphere, the strategy, and ever so slowly, Izzy is enthralled.
The best part is, Jack becomes this adorable hero. It really surprised me. He becomes such a supporting figure for her - giving her confidence around every turn or giving her a hard time to get her to laugh when needed.
"I'm still not great on air. I stumble or ramble and I never look right."
Jack stopped in front of her and settled back on his heels so he was at her eye level.
"Isabel Dalton, I know you can do this. I know you can beat this. You're strong and certain and so damn smart."
The tiniest hint of a smile was beginning to peek out of the corners of her lips, so he continued. He just wanted to see her really smile again. Even the smile that she used to wrap him around her little finger.
And yet Jack is facing some vulnerabilities too with the rumor the team might be sold to a different city. Much weight rides on his shoulders. And of course as the title dictates - the lucky charm. It seems every time Jack talks baseball with Izzy, that night at the game, something crazy good goes his way. He swears he isn't superstitious, but damn if he can't shake his luck.
The physical romance is quite slow to build, but the pacing never felt off. It all builds up very well to a romantic ending. Give this one a try.
Rating: B
May 4, 2014
In general my tastes in fiction run from zombies to dystopians with a side of paranormal and off-beat contemporary. Rarely do I read romance because I'm not a fan of the usual tropes and everything feels so...predictable but when I found out about Beth Bolden's new romance I asked for an ARC (okay begged) because I'm a fan of her style and she's always written romance in a way that I enjoy. Not too cheesy, not too lame. No insta-love but excellent plotting, real story-telling and interesting characters.
The character development on Izzy, Jack and Foxy (in particular)is perfect. I was caught up in them immediately and Beth (who you can tell is a LOVER of baseball)built a realistic world that was easy to sink into.
I can't ever review without giving up the story so I'll just say if you like (or love) fun, creative, romance definitely give The Lucky Charm a chance. It's a great read.
The character development on Izzy, Jack and Foxy (in particular)is perfect. I was caught up in them immediately and Beth (who you can tell is a LOVER of baseball)built a realistic world that was easy to sink into.
I can't ever review without giving up the story so I'll just say if you like (or love) fun, creative, romance definitely give The Lucky Charm a chance. It's a great read.
April 5, 2019
3.5 stars
I liked this one. The hero wasn't a jerk and typical jock but instead was nice honest and down-to-earth and super cute and understanding with the heroine. The heroine was an orphan for whom her career meant everything since it was tied up with her parent's loss so when she lands in broadcasting hell and finds herself liking the hero she does her level best to keep away. Despite understanding her reasons, the heroine did frustrate me but the thing is unfortunately women are judged by a different standard all throughout the world and the heroine had to fight for her career and integrity. I also loved how they took their relationship slowly.
I liked this one. The hero wasn't a jerk and typical jock but instead was nice honest and down-to-earth and super cute and understanding with the heroine. The heroine was an orphan for whom her career meant everything since it was tied up with her parent's loss so when she lands in broadcasting hell and finds herself liking the hero she does her level best to keep away. Despite understanding her reasons, the heroine did frustrate me but the thing is unfortunately women are judged by a different standard all throughout the world and the heroine had to fight for her career and integrity. I also loved how they took their relationship slowly.
May 30, 2014
This was a great little romance. I liked Izzy and Jack very well, and the dilemma keeping them apart felt, at times, insurmountable. A reporter falling for one of the team she covers is complete career suicide and the onus was completely on her. That's a lot of pressure to put on a relationship—not least because it is so unevenly distributed. I liked how well Jack held up to the frustration of having to hide how he felt for so long.
So Jack is just a great guy and lovely to be with. Completely atypical as these things go—caring and almost maternal without losing any masculinity in the process. You could see how these attributes (particularly taking care of the people around him) played out in all the aspects of his life but most notably with his teammates (though we could have done with getting to know more of them better instead of leaving Noah Fox as the only insight into the team as a whole).
What didn't work as well were Izzy's professional relationships. Toby was a complete train wreck and one that chafed through the whole book. That kind of Neanderthal has no sympathy, deserves no sympathy, and Izzy having to defer to him so completely just felt so wrong. Charlie was off-screen for most of the book and probably shouldn't have been (though he'd have been monstrously in the way had he been more of a presence). He works as a surrogate father, but I felt awful detached from him during the course of the book—worse, like he was horribly detached from Izzy for as close as their relationship was supposed to be. That worked out in the end, and resolved satisfactorily, but only just.
And I can't really say anything about the baseball. It feels accurate and real, but I dunno if that is just a clever illusion. Which probably means the author did an outstanding job, come to think of it—making the background feel real and important even for a non-fan. I thought Izzy took a suspiciously long time to become comfortable/knowledgeable about the thing she does all day, day in and day out, though. She was supposed to be smart, but how smart can you be if you can't keep basic terms clear in your head after a whole week?
So yeah, good book, but not quite enough to push it into outstanding. Close, though.
A note about Steamy: I wish I'd written this closer to when I actually finished the book as I can't recall more than that a) there was steam and b) it wasn't anywhere close to being too much for me. That means there can't have been more than a handful of scenes and probably not terribly long. Sorry about that...
So Jack is just a great guy and lovely to be with. Completely atypical as these things go—caring and almost maternal without losing any masculinity in the process. You could see how these attributes (particularly taking care of the people around him) played out in all the aspects of his life but most notably with his teammates (though we could have done with getting to know more of them better instead of leaving Noah Fox as the only insight into the team as a whole).
What didn't work as well were Izzy's professional relationships. Toby was a complete train wreck and one that chafed through the whole book. That kind of Neanderthal has no sympathy, deserves no sympathy, and Izzy having to defer to him so completely just felt so wrong. Charlie was off-screen for most of the book and probably shouldn't have been (though he'd have been monstrously in the way had he been more of a presence). He works as a surrogate father, but I felt awful detached from him during the course of the book—worse, like he was horribly detached from Izzy for as close as their relationship was supposed to be. That worked out in the end, and resolved satisfactorily, but only just.
And I can't really say anything about the baseball. It feels accurate and real, but I dunno if that is just a clever illusion. Which probably means the author did an outstanding job, come to think of it—making the background feel real and important even for a non-fan. I thought Izzy took a suspiciously long time to become comfortable/knowledgeable about the thing she does all day, day in and day out, though. She was supposed to be smart, but how smart can you be if you can't keep basic terms clear in your head after a whole week?
So yeah, good book, but not quite enough to push it into outstanding. Close, though.
A note about Steamy: I wish I'd written this closer to when I actually finished the book as I can't recall more than that a) there was steam and b) it wasn't anywhere close to being too much for me. That means there can't have been more than a handful of scenes and probably not terribly long. Sorry about that...
October 5, 2014
Overall, this was pretty charming! And the baseball was solid, which is something I'm supremely picky about it. (Actually, it might even be what I'm most picky about in fiction. Huh.) It also felt very much like a Pacific Northwest team. The fans not caring until they do, the threat of moving, ahhhh.
There were also some really great supporting characters. (The boss was maybe a bit one dimensional.)
I think my main complaint is about how the overall relationship conflict was dealt with. Their main conflict of a reporter dating player was just SO believable that I actually thought more should be done with it (and a woman in a male dominated profession dating a player? That would be hard). The other conflicts that popped up seemed flimsy by comparison. On the plus side, there were also a lot of conflicts that were avoided and that was SO GREAT.
Really excited for the male character who's getting the next book, but not sure about the setup in the excerpt. (I think I will still read it.)
Thanks to Dear Author for the book!
There were also some really great supporting characters. (The boss was maybe a bit one dimensional.)
I think my main complaint is about how the overall relationship conflict was dealt with. Their main conflict of a reporter dating player was just SO believable that I actually thought more should be done with it (and a woman in a male dominated profession dating a player? That would be hard). The other conflicts that popped up seemed flimsy by comparison. On the plus side, there were also a lot of conflicts that were avoided and that was SO GREAT.
Really excited for the male character who's getting the next book, but not sure about the setup in the excerpt. (I think I will still read it.)
Thanks to Dear Author for the book!
February 27, 2016
I think this was a freebie I downloaded and it's been sitting patiently on my TBR Shelf for 1 or 2 years. I'm giving it 4 Stars. It was a predictable story line but I like the characters and overall it was an enjoyable read.
June 30, 2017
This was a sweet, sporty romance centering around baseball stud Jack and struggling sideline reporter Izzy. Regarding the main characters, I really enjoyed the characterizations. Izzy and Jack were nuanced and real, and their slow burn relationship made sense. They had great chemistry! I also enjoyed Noah Fox and Pilar Richardson as more peripheral figures.
Not too crazy about some of the overbearing men in the story (like Izzy's boss, Toby). We aren't supposed to like him, but sometimes his crappy attitude came across as caricature-like. I could not connect with him as a real person (but then again, I don't know much about the world of professional sports).
The end felt abrupt - I would've loved to have favored the supersweet reunion - but I really enjoyed this book!
Not too crazy about some of the overbearing men in the story (like Izzy's boss, Toby). We aren't supposed to like him, but sometimes his crappy attitude came across as caricature-like. I could not connect with him as a real person (but then again, I don't know much about the world of professional sports).
The end felt abrupt - I would've loved to have favored the supersweet reunion - but I really enjoyed this book!
June 17, 2014
This was a really cute book you can't help but like. Although there was some baseball talk, it wasn't too hard to follow. I know less about baseball than Izzy does. So when baseball talk came up I may have skimmed over it. I hate to be lost in all the nonsense. But if you are a huge fan, then you are definitely going to love the fact that the author knows her stuff. Now don’t get me wrong, I do love the game and even enjoy watching it live. But my interest mostly lies in the uniform. ;)
Now while this book wasn't exploding with suspense and tension, it was a cute read. Every now and then, it is nice to take a break from all the action and drama and read a book that just makes you happy. And that was exactly what it did. It made me happy. I was happy to be reading it, happy to see it worked out in the end, and happy to know there is more coming. Not that the ending leaves us in a cliffhanger, because it doesn't. I just happened to see that the author has this as a series on goodreads. I could definitely see Foxy having his own book.
I did adore the characters. Especially Jack. He is just an all-around good guy. Of course he can be a bit immature at times but he isn't your typical professional baseball player. He loves the game and wants to take his team to the World Series. So he eats, sleeps, breathes baseball. Always has, always will. He doesn't have time for nonsense stuff like dating. Until Izzy.
Izzy is a great gal too. She takes too much crap off her craptastic boss, but she doesn't want to disappoint those that love her. So she goes with it and makes the most of it. If it was me I would have been long gone from that job on day one. It was great seeing her grow from this shell of a woman to something more living! And that is all thanks to Jack. Together they really helped each other become more throughout the book.
Of course I recommend this read...it was a sweet read with bits of romance peppered throughout. I give it 4 Lucky in Love Stars!
Now while this book wasn't exploding with suspense and tension, it was a cute read. Every now and then, it is nice to take a break from all the action and drama and read a book that just makes you happy. And that was exactly what it did. It made me happy. I was happy to be reading it, happy to see it worked out in the end, and happy to know there is more coming. Not that the ending leaves us in a cliffhanger, because it doesn't. I just happened to see that the author has this as a series on goodreads. I could definitely see Foxy having his own book.
I did adore the characters. Especially Jack. He is just an all-around good guy. Of course he can be a bit immature at times but he isn't your typical professional baseball player. He loves the game and wants to take his team to the World Series. So he eats, sleeps, breathes baseball. Always has, always will. He doesn't have time for nonsense stuff like dating. Until Izzy.
Izzy is a great gal too. She takes too much crap off her craptastic boss, but she doesn't want to disappoint those that love her. So she goes with it and makes the most of it. If it was me I would have been long gone from that job on day one. It was great seeing her grow from this shell of a woman to something more living! And that is all thanks to Jack. Together they really helped each other become more throughout the book.
Of course I recommend this read...it was a sweet read with bits of romance peppered throughout. I give it 4 Lucky in Love Stars!
August 27, 2016
Such a fun read. Adorable and likable characters, a lovely romance, an evil boss, a bit of intrigue and a happily ever after.
I absolutely love Jack. He's kind, persistent, thoughtful, adorable, patient, charming, and he's got a great sense of humor. I liked the way Jack sees Isabel. He sees her drive, values her strength and intelligence. And the way he feels when he makes her smile...
Isabel is a strong and determined woman. She's been thrown into a new job, a job she doesn't like, doesn't want, and is subject to an evil boss who hates her. Despite all that, she gives it her all, and is determined to succeed. But her feelings towards Jack are putting everything in jeopardy.
Jack and Isabel have great chemistry, a common outlook and drive, great banter and they understand each other like no one else ever has. I love the way they support, trust and respect each other. But their relationship is anything but easy, their careers - and their stubbornness - gets in the way. All the obstacles they face force their relationship to develop slowly, for them to become friends, to get to really know each other before things become romantic.
Can I say how much I loved Jack's best friend, Noah Fox - Foxy? Foxy is sweet, charming, fun, a bit of a matchmaker, and he loves kitten videos! I really hope Bolden is working on his book, he deserves a happy ending too.
I really enjoyed Bolden's writing style, she makes the reader feel the love not only between Jack and Isabel but of baseball, the heat, the excitement in the stands, even the smell of the ballpark, even for a non-sports fan like me. I'm very excited to read future stories in Beth Bolden's Portland series.
Disclosure: ebook provided in exchange for an honest review
I absolutely love Jack. He's kind, persistent, thoughtful, adorable, patient, charming, and he's got a great sense of humor. I liked the way Jack sees Isabel. He sees her drive, values her strength and intelligence. And the way he feels when he makes her smile...
Isabel is a strong and determined woman. She's been thrown into a new job, a job she doesn't like, doesn't want, and is subject to an evil boss who hates her. Despite all that, she gives it her all, and is determined to succeed. But her feelings towards Jack are putting everything in jeopardy.
Jack and Isabel have great chemistry, a common outlook and drive, great banter and they understand each other like no one else ever has. I love the way they support, trust and respect each other. But their relationship is anything but easy, their careers - and their stubbornness - gets in the way. All the obstacles they face force their relationship to develop slowly, for them to become friends, to get to really know each other before things become romantic.
Can I say how much I loved Jack's best friend, Noah Fox - Foxy? Foxy is sweet, charming, fun, a bit of a matchmaker, and he loves kitten videos! I really hope Bolden is working on his book, he deserves a happy ending too.
I really enjoyed Bolden's writing style, she makes the reader feel the love not only between Jack and Isabel but of baseball, the heat, the excitement in the stands, even the smell of the ballpark, even for a non-sports fan like me. I'm very excited to read future stories in Beth Bolden's Portland series.
Disclosure: ebook provided in exchange for an honest review
November 21, 2014
I don't like Baseball. I apologize to any of you who does, but it's just boring as hell. Isabel Dalton describes her feelings about Baseball at the beginning of the story, and it's just about word for word what I feel and think. It actually made me laugh.
What I do like, love even, is a sweet romance, and that's exactly what TheLuckyCharm is.
Izzy is alone in the world, having lost her parents, but she has Charlie, her boss. When Charlie falls ill, Izzy's job is terminated only to be sent to work as a sideline reporter.
Long story short, not even remotely liking Baseball, she tried to learn the game and get mildly passionate about it. Just so that she can do her job. She gets help from Jack Bennett, one of the team's stars.
I just gave you the boring cliffnotes of the plot. And not even the most accurate notes.
I left all the cool stuff out of my review, how romantic Jack Bennett is (Thank Goodness I mostly read in bed or I'd lose my balance from all the swooning), how determined Izzy is, and how absolutely sweet their story is.
I discovered Beth Bolden when I reviewed the Frequent Flyers compilation of romance in the air short stories. Check that one out - it's great.
And not I'm starting the next book in the Portland Pioneers series - Foxy's story. Woot.
Rounded up from 3.5 stars.
What I do like, love even, is a sweet romance, and that's exactly what TheLuckyCharm is.
Izzy is alone in the world, having lost her parents, but she has Charlie, her boss. When Charlie falls ill, Izzy's job is terminated only to be sent to work as a sideline reporter.
Long story short, not even remotely liking Baseball, she tried to learn the game and get mildly passionate about it. Just so that she can do her job. She gets help from Jack Bennett, one of the team's stars.
I just gave you the boring cliffnotes of the plot. And not even the most accurate notes.
I left all the cool stuff out of my review, how romantic Jack Bennett is (Thank Goodness I mostly read in bed or I'd lose my balance from all the swooning), how determined Izzy is, and how absolutely sweet their story is.
I discovered Beth Bolden when I reviewed the Frequent Flyers compilation of romance in the air short stories. Check that one out - it's great.
And not I'm starting the next book in the Portland Pioneers series - Foxy's story. Woot.
Rounded up from 3.5 stars.
July 27, 2014
Although most of the reviews I've seen are positive, unfortunately I personally found a lot lacking in this book.
There was nothing wrong with it per se, rather that it was long, drawn-out and well, boring. It took forever for Jack/Izzy to get together and whilst I usually love the build-up, this just went on and on .... and on.
Izzy's boss was an asshat and I am pretty sure that if I were Izzy I would have spoken to Human Resources about him, if only some other poor young woman wouldn't have to suffer at his hands. Pila was a random addition and as to Jack himself, I just did not get the way the whole 'lucky charm' thing was handled.
The inclusion of the random emails was also something else which didn't work for me.
There was nothing wrong with it per se, rather that it was long, drawn-out and well, boring. It took forever for Jack/Izzy to get together and whilst I usually love the build-up, this just went on and on .... and on.
Izzy's boss was an asshat and I am pretty sure that if I were Izzy I would have spoken to Human Resources about him, if only some other poor young woman wouldn't have to suffer at his hands. Pila was a random addition and as to Jack himself, I just did not get the way the whole 'lucky charm' thing was handled.
The inclusion of the random emails was also something else which didn't work for me.
May 13, 2014
I loved the characters and I loved the theme. My only problem is that it seemed like it went on forever before Izzy realized that her romance with Jack was worth fighting for. After a while I fast forwarded through my Kindle to get to the end. I still want to read Noah Fox's story even though this one was a bit sluggish.
May 9, 2014
I'm already dying for the next book!!
January 9, 2015
What a cute story....review to come.
August 31, 2018
2.5 stars. Uptight, lonely journalist forced into unwanted reporting gig for a baseball team. Cocky pro baseball-player falls in love with her and is convinced she's his lucky charm. She can't have a relationship with him. He can't play without her.
Is this a debut novel? (quickly checks) hmmm... I'm going to go with yes. Ok, so with that in mind, I'll be nice and say that this book had potential, but unfortunately didn't quite meet it.
I always struggle a bit when I start out reading an author's most recent books, and then dive into the back catalogue. When high expectations meet unpolished writing, you can feel a bit underwhelmed. And unfortunately that was the case here.
Izzy Dalton has had pretty much every horrible thing happen to her that you can imagine. Her mum died of cancer, her dad died in a car crash, her manager/mentor just had a heart attack and the guy she went out on a date with was a total asshole. And now Beth Bolden's going to throw a whole bunch more horrible at her too - with an unwanted job, a sexist manager, and a relationship that could be amazing... if it wasn't about to destroy her career.
Jack Bennett... Actually Jack Bennett has it all pretty easy. He wanted to be a pro baseballer, so he's fought for it and gotten there. He's famous, so he can be a dick to air hostesses and neighbours alike. He's rich, so he can have his house decorated however he wants. He's pretty much got everything, so when he wants Izzy Dalton too, he takes on the challenge.
This setup bothers me a bit. It had the potential to really dive into privilege and the shit women go through to claw their way to the top, but I don't think it ever really got there. It didn't help that Izzy's circumstances were really quite unbelievable , and then when she finally does make a stand the consequences are strangely minimal. The characters felt a bit 2D and inconsistent as well. We had the sexist manager (described that way before he even strings more than two sentences together), the uptight workaholic (although she didn't stay that way for long), the sleazy executive (what was with his weird possessiveness?), and so on.
I also never really liked Jack that much. His attitude to the air hostess at the beginning really bothered me, so I think that threw me for the rest of the book unfortunately.
In addition to all of this, I should say it clear that I'm not a baseball fan. I know nothing about baseball. I played some softball and rounders as a kid, and I can't even remember enough of that to work out what it has in common (or not) with baseball. So there were a bunch of moments when I had no idea what the characters were even talking about. This surprised me, since, going into the novel, I got the impression Izzy would know nothing either - so we'd learn about the game as she did - but I'm guessing there must have been a lot of learning going on behind the scenes that we were never included in.
All up, I forced my way through this and while I had moments where I didn't really mind it, in the end it never took me anywhere interesting either. I did find some of the side characters diverting (and my initial reasoning for reading this was to get the background needed so I can read some of Beth Bolden's other books that reference this series) but I don't think that will be enough to pull me back.
Is this a debut novel? (quickly checks) hmmm... I'm going to go with yes. Ok, so with that in mind, I'll be nice and say that this book had potential, but unfortunately didn't quite meet it.
I always struggle a bit when I start out reading an author's most recent books, and then dive into the back catalogue. When high expectations meet unpolished writing, you can feel a bit underwhelmed. And unfortunately that was the case here.
Izzy Dalton has had pretty much every horrible thing happen to her that you can imagine. Her mum died of cancer, her dad died in a car crash, her manager/mentor just had a heart attack and the guy she went out on a date with was a total asshole. And now Beth Bolden's going to throw a whole bunch more horrible at her too - with an unwanted job, a sexist manager, and a relationship that could be amazing... if it wasn't about to destroy her career.
Jack Bennett... Actually Jack Bennett has it all pretty easy. He wanted to be a pro baseballer, so he's fought for it and gotten there. He's famous, so he can be a dick to air hostesses and neighbours alike. He's rich, so he can have his house decorated however he wants. He's pretty much got everything, so when he wants Izzy Dalton too, he takes on the challenge.
This setup bothers me a bit. It had the potential to really dive into privilege and the shit women go through to claw their way to the top, but I don't think it ever really got there. It didn't help that Izzy's circumstances were really quite unbelievable , and then when she finally does make a stand the consequences are strangely minimal. The characters felt a bit 2D and inconsistent as well. We had the sexist manager (described that way before he even strings more than two sentences together), the uptight workaholic (although she didn't stay that way for long), the sleazy executive (what was with his weird possessiveness?), and so on.
I also never really liked Jack that much. His attitude to the air hostess at the beginning really bothered me, so I think that threw me for the rest of the book unfortunately.
In addition to all of this, I should say it clear that I'm not a baseball fan. I know nothing about baseball. I played some softball and rounders as a kid, and I can't even remember enough of that to work out what it has in common (or not) with baseball. So there were a bunch of moments when I had no idea what the characters were even talking about. This surprised me, since, going into the novel, I got the impression Izzy would know nothing either - so we'd learn about the game as she did - but I'm guessing there must have been a lot of learning going on behind the scenes that we were never included in.
All up, I forced my way through this and while I had moments where I didn't really mind it, in the end it never took me anywhere interesting either. I did find some of the side characters diverting (and my initial reasoning for reading this was to get the background needed so I can read some of Beth Bolden's other books that reference this series) but I don't think that will be enough to pull me back.
November 29, 2017
4.5 rounded up.
November 18, 2019
Was cute, light, fun, but not a lot happened, no real pressing conflict of angst but enjoyable and likeable characters
April 29, 2020
I enjoyed the romance between Izzy and Jack in Lucky Charm. I liked Jack’s friendship with Foxy and Izzy’s love for Charlie.
July 12, 2020
Cute story with likeable characters. The development of the romantic relationship seemed realistic and there were genuine reasons complicating things. The ending was unfortunately abrupt.
April 20, 2024
Dumb third act break-up but pretty decent baseball knowledge.
September 7, 2016
The Lucky Charm was quite the charm! I am a huge baseball fan (Go Rangers!) so when the opportunity came up to review this book I took. I love sports romances and The Lucky Charm was a good one.
Izabel Dalton is a workaholic who hasn't been on a date in eight months. She devotes all of her time to her job. Then Izzy finally accept a date, if you could call it that. It was BAD. Things start to go downhill from here. To make matters worse her boss, who is like a second father to her has a heart attack, then she is transferred to Portland to be the new sideline reporter for the Portland Pioneers.
Izzy hasn't had the best life, she lost both her parents tragically. That is why she works so hard. She wants to prove that she can do something with herself and hope that they would have been proud. I loved Izzy, she was sweet, charming, and she a hard worker. Izzy is devastated to be moved to Portland. She doesn't know the first thing about baseball and she never wanted to be in front of the camera. She wanted to be behind it.
Enter Jack Bennett. He is the starting second baseman and doesn't do interviews. He is the one player everyone is trying to crack so they can find out more about him.
"Jack was just the right balance of cocky and crazy, sweet and sarcastic."
I loved Jack from the get go. He loved baseball and played because of his love for the game. He didn't care about the money, he cared about the game. He studied it, trained hard, and played because he loved it. If you are looking for a strong alpha-male you won't find it in Jake. He is down to earth and sweet. I love that about him. As the book went on he got sweeter sweeter. Jack doesn't believe in superstitions but he does believe in luck. Luck plays a big part in this book and I enjoyed seeing the up's and down's of the luck.
I loved the chemistry between Izzy and Jack. It took a LONG time for anything to happen but you just knew it was coming. I understand why the build up needed to be there but some of the stuff became very repetitious and it made this book drag out.
We can't forget about Noah "Foxy" Fox. He is Jack's best friend and I loved him. He was the perfect best friend. Foxy was sweet, and funny, super funny. I hope we get to see more of him.
Toby is another major player in this book. He is Izzy's new boss. I HATED him, loathed him, despised him. He was a cruel man with an ego he shouldn't have because he is not that good.
One of my favorite parts about this book was the fact that Beth used real baseball players in the book. She mentioned Josh Hamilton and his issues and they weren't in a good way and I loved it (Rangers fan remember?). This is a really long book, over four hundred pages. I liked the build up in it and getting to see where they story would go but I think there were some stuff that could have been cut out and this story would have been just as great. Many things were repeated over and over and it became tedious. I will say I am very frustrated with the ending. There was so much build up to get to where they were going and then one final sentence and it was over. I clicked on my kindle at least five times saying "Why aren't you changing pages?! This can't be over yet!". It ends. Just ends! We get resolution to one thing but there are many unanswered questions; what happened to Toby after the incident with Izzy? What about Foxy? Is Charlie doing okay? I see on Goodreads that is #1 in the series but the second book isn't listed so I don't know if it will be a continuation of Izzy and Jack's story or if it will be another character in the book's story, hopefully Noah's. I need closure!!
Izabel Dalton is a workaholic who hasn't been on a date in eight months. She devotes all of her time to her job. Then Izzy finally accept a date, if you could call it that. It was BAD. Things start to go downhill from here. To make matters worse her boss, who is like a second father to her has a heart attack, then she is transferred to Portland to be the new sideline reporter for the Portland Pioneers.
Izzy hasn't had the best life, she lost both her parents tragically. That is why she works so hard. She wants to prove that she can do something with herself and hope that they would have been proud. I loved Izzy, she was sweet, charming, and she a hard worker. Izzy is devastated to be moved to Portland. She doesn't know the first thing about baseball and she never wanted to be in front of the camera. She wanted to be behind it.
Enter Jack Bennett. He is the starting second baseman and doesn't do interviews. He is the one player everyone is trying to crack so they can find out more about him.
"Jack was just the right balance of cocky and crazy, sweet and sarcastic."
I loved Jack from the get go. He loved baseball and played because of his love for the game. He didn't care about the money, he cared about the game. He studied it, trained hard, and played because he loved it. If you are looking for a strong alpha-male you won't find it in Jake. He is down to earth and sweet. I love that about him. As the book went on he got sweeter sweeter. Jack doesn't believe in superstitions but he does believe in luck. Luck plays a big part in this book and I enjoyed seeing the up's and down's of the luck.
I loved the chemistry between Izzy and Jack. It took a LONG time for anything to happen but you just knew it was coming. I understand why the build up needed to be there but some of the stuff became very repetitious and it made this book drag out.
We can't forget about Noah "Foxy" Fox. He is Jack's best friend and I loved him. He was the perfect best friend. Foxy was sweet, and funny, super funny. I hope we get to see more of him.
Toby is another major player in this book. He is Izzy's new boss. I HATED him, loathed him, despised him. He was a cruel man with an ego he shouldn't have because he is not that good.
One of my favorite parts about this book was the fact that Beth used real baseball players in the book. She mentioned Josh Hamilton and his issues and they weren't in a good way and I loved it (Rangers fan remember?). This is a really long book, over four hundred pages. I liked the build up in it and getting to see where they story would go but I think there were some stuff that could have been cut out and this story would have been just as great. Many things were repeated over and over and it became tedious. I will say I am very frustrated with the ending. There was so much build up to get to where they were going and then one final sentence and it was over. I clicked on my kindle at least five times saying "Why aren't you changing pages?! This can't be over yet!". It ends. Just ends! We get resolution to one thing but there are many unanswered questions; what happened to Toby after the incident with Izzy? What about Foxy? Is Charlie doing okay? I see on Goodreads that is #1 in the series but the second book isn't listed so I don't know if it will be a continuation of Izzy and Jack's story or if it will be another character in the book's story, hopefully Noah's. I need closure!!
August 6, 2016
Note: I received a complimentary copy from the author for having won a giveaway and with no strings attached. This did not colour my views in any way.
The Lucky Charm is the kind of story that charms its way into your "awesome debuts" shelf with competent story-telling and a little heart. It's not terribly fascinating at first, I don't think, but it's endearing and charming and fresh. Nothing like a book that leaves you grinning and sighing in contentment by the last page.
Izzy is smart (supposed to be, anyway) and hard-working. I'm not particularly fond of the way she lets her boss treat her disrespectfully for most of the story, so it's gratifying to see her stand up for herself later, even if I think it isn't enough and clearly long overdue. She's afraid of losing people dear to her, but it almost seems as though the one she's lost most is herself. Meanwhile, in many ways, Jack is like this book—charismatic and sneakily (haha) gets under your skin. Have to admire a guy who's determined to prove he can…even using goofy methods that involve a mower. His diligent pursuit of and unrelenting support for Izzy are adorable, his honesty really refreshing. Oh, and he talks. Oh, boy, can he talk.
Izzy and Jack are easy characters to get acquainted with, and it's satisfying to see their cute story unfold. The nature of their relationship has a lot of typical pitfalls, but Bolden manages to avoid the cut-and-dried routes for any of them by writing characters who think, communicate, and try to understand and respect each other. There's not a lack of insecurities and doubts, of course, but the book doesn't dwell on them for very long. Jack's persistence and Izzy's straightforwardness really help with that, so I don't really tire of their going around in circles for a while.
I'm on a sports-themed romance kick this past week, and I'm certainly lucky to have hit the jackpot with a new-to-me author. If there's one thing I can say about this debut, it's that it's remarkably easy to read and get into even with the slow start. I also like the authentic feel of this book's baseball; it's interesting even for someone who's not a fan of the sport. (What do I know about baseball? Even less than Izzy's know-how, that's for sure. Good thing Jack, heart of his team, helps her understand the game.)
The Lucky Charm is a bewitching and entertaining read. If sports romance is your thing and you want something sweet and light, definitely give this book a try.
(Noah's story is on my most-anticipated list. I thought Tabby must not have been that bad and would redeem herself, but a sister? That's even better.)
The Lucky Charm is the kind of story that charms its way into your "awesome debuts" shelf with competent story-telling and a little heart. It's not terribly fascinating at first, I don't think, but it's endearing and charming and fresh. Nothing like a book that leaves you grinning and sighing in contentment by the last page.
Izzy is smart (supposed to be, anyway) and hard-working. I'm not particularly fond of the way she lets her boss treat her disrespectfully for most of the story, so it's gratifying to see her stand up for herself later, even if I think it isn't enough and clearly long overdue. She's afraid of losing people dear to her, but it almost seems as though the one she's lost most is herself. Meanwhile, in many ways, Jack is like this book—charismatic and sneakily (haha) gets under your skin. Have to admire a guy who's determined to prove he can…even using goofy methods that involve a mower. His diligent pursuit of and unrelenting support for Izzy are adorable, his honesty really refreshing. Oh, and he talks. Oh, boy, can he talk.
Izzy and Jack are easy characters to get acquainted with, and it's satisfying to see their cute story unfold. The nature of their relationship has a lot of typical pitfalls, but Bolden manages to avoid the cut-and-dried routes for any of them by writing characters who think, communicate, and try to understand and respect each other. There's not a lack of insecurities and doubts, of course, but the book doesn't dwell on them for very long. Jack's persistence and Izzy's straightforwardness really help with that, so I don't really tire of their going around in circles for a while.
I'm on a sports-themed romance kick this past week, and I'm certainly lucky to have hit the jackpot with a new-to-me author. If there's one thing I can say about this debut, it's that it's remarkably easy to read and get into even with the slow start. I also like the authentic feel of this book's baseball; it's interesting even for someone who's not a fan of the sport. (What do I know about baseball? Even less than Izzy's know-how, that's for sure. Good thing Jack, heart of his team, helps her understand the game.)
The Lucky Charm is a bewitching and entertaining read. If sports romance is your thing and you want something sweet and light, definitely give this book a try.
(Noah's story is on my most-anticipated list. I thought Tabby must not have been that bad and would redeem herself, but a sister? That's even better.)
February 28, 2017
I really really enjoyed this book. It had to be hard to keep their relationship from others due to her job but they belonged together and I hope I get a bit more of their story in the next book about his best friend
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 29, 2016
The Lucky Charm (Portland Pioneers #1) by new to me, self-published author, Beth Bolden is one swell sport romance. Fans of Rachel Gibson or Jill Shalvis will have a ball reading this book. The heroine Izzy is one you want to hug. She is so adorable, sweet and hard working. She lives and breathes her work as an assistant to a producer at a sports network on a smaller scale like ESPN. When her loving boss has a heart attack, she’s forced to become an on-air sideline reporter for the Portland Pioneers, a baseball team that’s expected to have a bad year.
Izzy doesn’t want to be in front of the camera at all, but has no choice, or she’ll be unemployed. Toby, the new boss she’s forced to work with is incredibly insulting and cruel to Izzy, so much so that he should be brought up on harassment charges and fired. She would have a great lawsuit against him. He calls Izzy ugly, stupid, among a list of other things because he wants her to leave. Toby comes across as a very one-dimensional villain that will make the reader steam because of his treatment toward Izzy. This is the one downside to this story.
But then there’s Jack, the star of the Pioneers and a total prince of a man. He is so smitten with Izzy, and even though she blocks his attempts at romance, he’s willing to be friends with her. They can’t be together out in the open because of their jobs, but their secret interactions (many pizza dates in their respective hotel rooms) are adorable. Jack basically ends up courting Izzy.
Jack has such a deep respect for Izzy and he acts like a gentleman the entire time although he lusts for her badly. He gives her the confidence she needs to do her job (Izzy hates baseball and knows nothing about it). Izzy learns to stand up for herself with the help of Jack and some of his team mates who have grown to love Izzy like Jack has.
The Lucky Charm is a great read for teens and adult. I would say the sensuality level is in the PG-13 range. There’s one love scene between Jack and Izzy that isn’t too descriptive or over the top. Watching these two fall in love is very satisfying, and the ending is full of win.
A must read for any contemporary romance fan!
Izzy doesn’t want to be in front of the camera at all, but has no choice, or she’ll be unemployed. Toby, the new boss she’s forced to work with is incredibly insulting and cruel to Izzy, so much so that he should be brought up on harassment charges and fired. She would have a great lawsuit against him. He calls Izzy ugly, stupid, among a list of other things because he wants her to leave. Toby comes across as a very one-dimensional villain that will make the reader steam because of his treatment toward Izzy. This is the one downside to this story.
But then there’s Jack, the star of the Pioneers and a total prince of a man. He is so smitten with Izzy, and even though she blocks his attempts at romance, he’s willing to be friends with her. They can’t be together out in the open because of their jobs, but their secret interactions (many pizza dates in their respective hotel rooms) are adorable. Jack basically ends up courting Izzy.
Jack has such a deep respect for Izzy and he acts like a gentleman the entire time although he lusts for her badly. He gives her the confidence she needs to do her job (Izzy hates baseball and knows nothing about it). Izzy learns to stand up for herself with the help of Jack and some of his team mates who have grown to love Izzy like Jack has.
The Lucky Charm is a great read for teens and adult. I would say the sensuality level is in the PG-13 range. There’s one love scene between Jack and Izzy that isn’t too descriptive or over the top. Watching these two fall in love is very satisfying, and the ending is full of win.
A must read for any contemporary romance fan!
June 8, 2014
The Lucky Charm was definitely a little charmer of a book. It’s a very sweet story between Izzy Dalton and Jack Bennett.
Izzy hasn’t had the best life. After losing both of her parents she does what she thinks would make them proud; even if it may not be exactly what she wants in life. She is basically forced to take a position as a side line reporter for the Portland Pioneers. There is one major problem….she doesn’t like baseball and doesn’t know the first thing about it.
Enter Jack Bennett. He is the starting 2nd baseman for the Pioneers. He plays for the love of the game, not for the money or the fame. When Izzy first steps in as the reporter he is drawn to her. He inserts himself into her first interview with his friend Noah “Foxy” Fox. After that interview he finds that he can’t stay away from her. Their relationship has a nice, slow build. They take their time getting to know one another, even though Izzy is doing everything she can to push him away for fear of losing her job.
I loved Jack from the beginning. He is very sweet and very down to earth. I enjoyed seeing his interaction with the secondary characters (Foxy and the team’s manager). I was very frustrated with Izzy at times. She kept running from things and had a hard times standing up for what she wanted. I was happy to see that she didn’t finish the book that way.
This was a quite a long book, a lot of stuff kept being repeated that in my opinion didn’t need to be. But I absolutely loved that Beth knew the sport of baseball. I could feel her love of the sport when she described any of the baseball scenes. Being a sports lover myself I appreciated that in this story.
But that ending…really?! I liked the ending and there was some closure, but there was so much more that we needed to know. Hopefully those things will be answered in Noah’s story.
Izzy hasn’t had the best life. After losing both of her parents she does what she thinks would make them proud; even if it may not be exactly what she wants in life. She is basically forced to take a position as a side line reporter for the Portland Pioneers. There is one major problem….she doesn’t like baseball and doesn’t know the first thing about it.
Enter Jack Bennett. He is the starting 2nd baseman for the Pioneers. He plays for the love of the game, not for the money or the fame. When Izzy first steps in as the reporter he is drawn to her. He inserts himself into her first interview with his friend Noah “Foxy” Fox. After that interview he finds that he can’t stay away from her. Their relationship has a nice, slow build. They take their time getting to know one another, even though Izzy is doing everything she can to push him away for fear of losing her job.
I loved Jack from the beginning. He is very sweet and very down to earth. I enjoyed seeing his interaction with the secondary characters (Foxy and the team’s manager). I was very frustrated with Izzy at times. She kept running from things and had a hard times standing up for what she wanted. I was happy to see that she didn’t finish the book that way.
This was a quite a long book, a lot of stuff kept being repeated that in my opinion didn’t need to be. But I absolutely loved that Beth knew the sport of baseball. I could feel her love of the sport when she described any of the baseball scenes. Being a sports lover myself I appreciated that in this story.
But that ending…really?! I liked the ending and there was some closure, but there was so much more that we needed to know. Hopefully those things will be answered in Noah’s story.
June 1, 2014
I've always enjoyed sporty romance, this is the first one I've read with baseball players, and I loved it just as much as ice hockey, football and race car driving! I have to admit I love a bad boy who deep down is full of warm gooey goodness!!!
Izzy is a workaholic, she has no real friends apart from her boss, and she her parents are both dead. Although she does not acknowledge that things are missing from her life, she is a lonely person. She had so many goals in life, but right now she is stuck, to afraid to move forward. When her mentor and boss has a heart attack, she is forced to make a massive change in her life and her job. She is thrown into the world of baseball, acting as the team journalist and forced to leave home and move cities. What she doesn't realise is that this event will change the course of her life.
When we first meet Jack he is a typical player. He is arrogant,cocky and manipulative but under all that he is a hard worker and a good man. The relationship that he has with his buddy Noah is awesome and when Noah convinces Jack to ask out the new chick he cant resist. When Jack gets to know Izzy and learns about all her insecurities and quirks he realises how much he wants her. When he sees Izzy bumbling her way around the baseball scene he teaches her all there is to know about baseball and slowly their relationship develops into more.
I'm not going to give away much more about this book.Just pick this up, it is a fun romantic read, not too heavy, not too steamy just right. A good old bad boy turned good by the bumbling beautiful woman!
Izzy is a workaholic, she has no real friends apart from her boss, and she her parents are both dead. Although she does not acknowledge that things are missing from her life, she is a lonely person. She had so many goals in life, but right now she is stuck, to afraid to move forward. When her mentor and boss has a heart attack, she is forced to make a massive change in her life and her job. She is thrown into the world of baseball, acting as the team journalist and forced to leave home and move cities. What she doesn't realise is that this event will change the course of her life.
When we first meet Jack he is a typical player. He is arrogant,cocky and manipulative but under all that he is a hard worker and a good man. The relationship that he has with his buddy Noah is awesome and when Noah convinces Jack to ask out the new chick he cant resist. When Jack gets to know Izzy and learns about all her insecurities and quirks he realises how much he wants her. When he sees Izzy bumbling her way around the baseball scene he teaches her all there is to know about baseball and slowly their relationship develops into more.
I'm not going to give away much more about this book.Just pick this up, it is a fun romantic read, not too heavy, not too steamy just right. A good old bad boy turned good by the bumbling beautiful woman!
August 9, 2017
4.5 stars
I loved this book! I brought it down 1/2 a star because I thought it ended a little abruptly; I was expecting an epilogue or, at least, one more chapter. Sigh, I really just wanted more of these characters. I especially adored Jack! He was much more of a beta hero, than the typical alpha you find in a lot of romance novels. He was funny and outrageous, sometimes, and really sweet with Izzy. He followed Izzy lead a lot of times and wasn't crazy possessive of her.
I didn't like Izzy as much as I liked Jack, but she was still a good character: she was kind of shy but not a pushover. She rationally considered how her relationship with Jack could effect her career, rather than being overwhelmed by her feelings and just straight into the relationship, regardless of the consequences.
I also really loved how Jack and Izzy interacted; they felt like real people in a real relationship and had great chemistry.
I've been in a bit of a reading slump recently; I've been reading but not particularly liking what I'm reading. This book made me realize why: I read romances for the characters and their chemistry. Unique and creative plots are great additions to this, but they won't save a book with flat, boring characters. This book had a fairly cliche plot (sports star and reporter fall in love) but great characters and chemistry, which automatically made me forget about the cliqueness of the plot until writing this review.
I loved this book! I brought it down 1/2 a star because I thought it ended a little abruptly; I was expecting an epilogue or, at least, one more chapter. Sigh, I really just wanted more of these characters. I especially adored Jack! He was much more of a beta hero, than the typical alpha you find in a lot of romance novels. He was funny and outrageous, sometimes, and really sweet with Izzy. He followed Izzy lead a lot of times and wasn't crazy possessive of her.
I didn't like Izzy as much as I liked Jack, but she was still a good character: she was kind of shy but not a pushover. She rationally considered how her relationship with Jack could effect her career, rather than being overwhelmed by her feelings and just straight into the relationship, regardless of the consequences.
I also really loved how Jack and Izzy interacted; they felt like real people in a real relationship and had great chemistry.
I've been in a bit of a reading slump recently; I've been reading but not particularly liking what I'm reading. This book made me realize why: I read romances for the characters and their chemistry. Unique and creative plots are great additions to this, but they won't save a book with flat, boring characters. This book had a fairly cliche plot (sports star and reporter fall in love) but great characters and chemistry, which automatically made me forget about the cliqueness of the plot until writing this review.
May 13, 2014
I love it! Everything about the novel is like a breath of fresh air. It is a very cute tale that anyone will enjoy. I think this is a very good debut novel. Good job for Ms. Beth Holden. Hoping for more Jazzy(JackXIzzy). :P
I am an enthusiast for sports romance novels and in the others that I have read, there seems to be a recurring pattern. Guy lives as the ultimate bachelor, his life revolves around the sport, money, booze and sex. Arrogant pricks that seems to think that they are God's gift to women, then comes a long the fiery chick that seems to be unaffected by his charm, he likes the challenge, then he falls in love, the end. Yep, that's the usual pattern. But in The Lucky Charm, you will see none of that. Jack Bennett is a unconventional professional athlete, he is not beautifully handsome, as Izzy said, he is fairy average and seems to be in the shadow of his bestfriend Noah Fox. But Jack has a certain charm. Ann attractiveness that Izzy seems to have acquired over time. And that is what makes this novel more inclined to reality. Their attraction is chemically true. Izzy likes Jack not because of his good looks, his money and devilish personality. They are just attracted to each other, that's it.
I enjoyed reading this and I'm hoping to get more of Jack and Izzy's love story. I would very much recommend The Lucky Charm!
I am an enthusiast for sports romance novels and in the others that I have read, there seems to be a recurring pattern. Guy lives as the ultimate bachelor, his life revolves around the sport, money, booze and sex. Arrogant pricks that seems to think that they are God's gift to women, then comes a long the fiery chick that seems to be unaffected by his charm, he likes the challenge, then he falls in love, the end. Yep, that's the usual pattern. But in The Lucky Charm, you will see none of that. Jack Bennett is a unconventional professional athlete, he is not beautifully handsome, as Izzy said, he is fairy average and seems to be in the shadow of his bestfriend Noah Fox. But Jack has a certain charm. Ann attractiveness that Izzy seems to have acquired over time. And that is what makes this novel more inclined to reality. Their attraction is chemically true. Izzy likes Jack not because of his good looks, his money and devilish personality. They are just attracted to each other, that's it.
I enjoyed reading this and I'm hoping to get more of Jack and Izzy's love story. I would very much recommend The Lucky Charm!
May 7, 2014
I'll be the first to admit that contemporary M/F isn't my favorite genre, but this came recommended by sources I trust. Some recommendations have really worked for me, unfortunately I just didn't click with most of this one.
I thought too much of the book was spent on Izzy pushing Jack away because she was concerned dating him would make her look unprofessional. I found that a very reasonable concern, I just got tired of it after about half the book and wanted the characters to move on. I wasn't feeling very much tension during that part and it was hard to keep my interest in the book. I needed some other conflict during the middle of the book to keep me engaged.
It took me a very long time to warm up to Izzy at all. Jack was a great hero, funny and caring and clearly really into her, and occasionally I wanted to yell at Izzy for not noticing all of that or for doubting him. I liked it when she finally stood up for herself, but it came a little too late in the book for me.
I liked the ending of the book and I liked the side characters. I'll probably come back and check out Noah's book when it comes out. I'm curious to know what exactly happened with Tabitha, I didn't get as many details on that as I wanted in this book.
I thought too much of the book was spent on Izzy pushing Jack away because she was concerned dating him would make her look unprofessional. I found that a very reasonable concern, I just got tired of it after about half the book and wanted the characters to move on. I wasn't feeling very much tension during that part and it was hard to keep my interest in the book. I needed some other conflict during the middle of the book to keep me engaged.
It took me a very long time to warm up to Izzy at all. Jack was a great hero, funny and caring and clearly really into her, and occasionally I wanted to yell at Izzy for not noticing all of that or for doubting him. I liked it when she finally stood up for herself, but it came a little too late in the book for me.
I liked the ending of the book and I liked the side characters. I'll probably come back and check out Noah's book when it comes out. I'm curious to know what exactly happened with Tabitha, I didn't get as many details on that as I wanted in this book.
July 21, 2016
I really enjoyed this book.
It was a Dear Author recommended book, or at least they talked about it and I liked what I heard.
It is a fairly realistic baseball book. My husband is a big fan so I know more about baseball than I necessarily want to. But it rang authentic to me for the most part.
Izzy is our heroine and Jack is our hero.
They are thrown together by career choices. Jack made his choices and is very happy with them; Izzy had her career "choices" thrust upon her, and she is decidedly not so happy with them.
Baseball is how they meet. Jack is a player (baseball player, not a swinger/player) and he loves being a player. He has lived and loved baseball all his life.
Izzy is a journalist, and she doesn't love baseball. She is not a player, either in baseball or the social scene.
There is an instant connection, one not necessarily embraced by either individual. But when it is embraced, the story gets going and we are treated to a lovely read.
There were some editing issues but nothing egregious. Emotions and circumstances are well written and understandable to the reader. The roll-your-eyes moments are few, if any.
Just a pleasure to read. I very much look forward to other books by this author.
It was a Dear Author recommended book, or at least they talked about it and I liked what I heard.
It is a fairly realistic baseball book. My husband is a big fan so I know more about baseball than I necessarily want to. But it rang authentic to me for the most part.
Izzy is our heroine and Jack is our hero.
They are thrown together by career choices. Jack made his choices and is very happy with them; Izzy had her career "choices" thrust upon her, and she is decidedly not so happy with them.
Baseball is how they meet. Jack is a player (baseball player, not a swinger/player) and he loves being a player. He has lived and loved baseball all his life.
Izzy is a journalist, and she doesn't love baseball. She is not a player, either in baseball or the social scene.
There is an instant connection, one not necessarily embraced by either individual. But when it is embraced, the story gets going and we are treated to a lovely read.
There were some editing issues but nothing egregious. Emotions and circumstances are well written and understandable to the reader. The roll-your-eyes moments are few, if any.
Just a pleasure to read. I very much look forward to other books by this author.
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