MELTING THE ICE is Book seven in Jaci Burton's Play-by- Play series. The two main characters are fashion fledgling fashion designer Carolina Preston and star hockey player Drew Hogan. The two have some history together. Drew is a longtime good friend of her brother's and they had a brief but passionate encounter in college. They are now thrown together years later when Gray, Carolina's brother, suggest she ask Drew to model and help promote her new fashion line. Sparks fly right away.

The characters in MELTING THE ICE are very easy to relate to and the dialogue between characters seems real and not forced. In addition to the hot romance, this story seemed to be about two people reconciling who they were in their early twenties with who they are today. From the beginning, Drew tries to get Carolina to see him as the better, more mature guy he's grown into rather than the cocky, thoughtless young guy he was. Likewise, Carolina comes to the realization that it might have been a good thing that she and Drew didn't get into a relationship back then. She is a more confident, independent woman now and that translates into her being in a better place emotionally to get involved with somebody.

I like both characters a lot. Drew and Carolina are both very driven, but caring people. Some of the story revolves around them trying to make a romantic relationship work around their very hectic careers. I think they both have a strong sense of family -- Carolina with her actual family and Drew with his family made up of close friends and teammates.

I was happy that, in spite of the teasing when they first meet up again, they don't have an adversarial relationship throughout the book. Instead, their relationship becomes very sexy and fun. The sex scenes in MELTING THE ICE are very hot and written very well, but I feel like they are also balanced with great character development and real emotion. I enjoyed the supporting characters in this story as well. I'd love to read a story about Carolina's friend Stella and Drew's buddy Trick. I look forward to reading more books by Jaci Burton in the future!

Book Summary

BODY CHECK

Everything's coming together for budding fashion designer Carolina Preston. Only months away from having her own line, she could use some publicity. That's when her brother suggests his best friend as a model, hockey player Drew Hogan.

Carolina and Drew already have a history, a hot one, back in college. Unforgettable for Carolina, but for Drew, just another slap shot. This time, though, it's different. His perfect body would be for professional use only. This time, she could use him.

Drew is all for it. He's looking forward to the exposure. Plus, it would give him a chance to prove to Carolina that he's changed. If only he could thaw her emotions, convince her to let down her guard and let him in just one more time...