If you're in need or want of an engaging YA romance that will keep you in suspense because there are a lot of twists and you really care about whether the protagonists get together in the end you can't do better than Lynn Painter's Fake Skating. It's about a boy and a girl individually dealing with really stressful life circumstances.
Alec, nicknamed Zeus, is his school and town's great ice hockey 🏒 hope. The sport reigns supreme there. For all the times the Southview Packers have made playoffs they've never gone all the way. Everyone is counting on Zeus to provide the skills and the magic. It's his senior year.
He also feels that he's the only one who can pull his family out of the financial crisis they're in through no fault of their own. They're deep in medical debt from a car accident his father was in. His father can't work. Alec feels that making pro hockey is the only way they can pay off the debt and become financially stable. He is hiding a serious shoulder injury for fear it could derail his career.
Dani has been a military brat, having to move frequently because of her father's career. Formerly outgoing, she was bullied in ninth grade and now is cynical and cautious, focusing on keeping schoolmates at a distance so they can't hurt her. Her parents have divorced. She and her mother have moved to the town her mother grew up in.
Until they were twelve Dani and her mother spent time in that town every summer. Dani and Alec were inseparable best friends...
...but a lot has happened in the intervening years. They both have changed a lot. And each feels betrayed by the other. Circumstances make it expeditious for them to fake a romance. After awhile they both want it to be real...
...But there is someone determined to prevent that from happening.
I was riding my exercise bike when I got near the end of the book. I was so unable to put the book down even though it meant extra cycling. That's how engaging Fake Skating is.
On a purrrsonal note, I feel so energized now that we're back on daylight savings time as of yesterday. Seeing it stay light out longer was so beautiful!!! Today temps are supposed to get into the 50s. Whole lotta snow gonna melt. Having lived in New England my whole life, I'm under no delusion that it's smooth sailing from now till next autumn. At least one more storm is guaranteed. But I enjoy the spring adjacent preview of coming attractions.
Today I will get my fourth tattoo. Can't wait to share a picture with you.
A great big shout out goes out to the Canadian province that is now going with year round daylight savings time. Setting a great example for the rest of us.
Jules Hathaway
Sent from my U.S.Cellular© Smartphone
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