Book Review and Giveaway for Long Shot by Kennedy Ryan

LONG SHOT
by KENNEDY RYAN

A FORBIDDEN LOVE SET IN THE EXPLOSIVE WORLD OF THE NBA...

Think you know what it's like being a baller's girl?
You don't.
My fairy tale is upside down.
A happily never after.
I kissed the prince and he turned into a fraud.
I was a fool, and his love - fool's gold.

Now there's a new player in the game, August West.
One of the NBA's brightest stars.
Fine. Forbidden.
He wants me. I want him.
But my past, my fraudulent prince, just won't let me go.

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REVIEW: 5 Humbling Stars
"Those eyes are the color of whiskey tonight, and they're just as intoxicating. She goes right to my head."

I'm sure I will be a raving 5 star review floating among a sea of hundreds, so mine may not stick out much. But if you know me, I love to give my opinion on books, especially ones that touch me or move me. This one had everything I needed to keep the midnight oil burning while I ravaged the pages. I was giddy when August and Iris met. I was mad when circumstances didn't work in their favor. I was fuming when reasons appeared as calculated and purposeful and added fuel to the fire of hurt. My heart, it could barely withstand the pain covering these pages, but I knew that Kennedy had a story she needed to tell me. I needed to be patient and make it through her words. It was definitely an exercise in patience and understanding for me.

As difficult as it was, I made it through - but not without stopping and having to put it down. This was a read that I needed to marinate in....it was a savoring kind of read, one that I couldn't power through. It was one that made me read slow, meticulously, soaking up the words as she intended because they were hard hitting words. This one hit me so hard. It was an emotional sucker punch right to the gut...but it was amazing. It's tragic, the actions and happenings in this book, but the fact that she was able to depict such a horrific world and turn it around to give us the love and the happy ending we crave, that tells me something. Kennedy is powerful with her words. She is one of the most conscious writers of actual REAL issues. She is able to wrap these societal issues up in a book that makes you THINK. It makes you FEEL. But you don't feel like you are having some opinion forced down your throat. She is bringing to light tragic issues responsibly, while appealing to our romantic hearts....and I just love her for it. She always has an impact on my heart and my mind. I will admit, this book definitely made me see things in a different light. It was eye-opening and angering, emotional and beautiful, all wrapped up into one beautiful book.

"Yesterday's regrets make today's sorrows."

I had to message Kennedy a few times while reading this. At first it was August that was getting my excitement because of how 'perfect' he was. And when I say perfect, I mean literally perfect. Kennedy Ryan is one of my favorite HERO writers. Her men, they are definitely ones of the swoon-tipping crowd, but they are not infallible. They are real. They have their own controversies surrounding them, but they are real to the very core of their personalities and convictions. August was the man, through and through.

When we met the sassy and witty Iris, I knew she was going to be one of my favorite heroines. She was strong. She was opinionated. She had drive. Everything about her, I could look up to and admire. And yet, my head shakes when I see what happened during this book, and how perceptions are actually rumors in disguise. How questions turn into misdirected accusations. My heart hurt, but I never stopped looking up to her because with everything she went through, she held her head high and always did the most admirable things. I loved everything about her.

"If you ever want a man to keep dreaming, give him a glimpse of what could be."

If I wanted to discuss the love and the drive that August had for Iris, I would be able to get all giddy and smile, look to the heavens and sigh. I could. But that would be a gimme, right? He just did everything right. He fought long and hard for a feeling. Yes, a feeling. And to me? It spoke volumes about his personality and his strength as a man. His thoughtfulness was apparent, as well as swoon-worthy. The little things he did and the big things he did...they all had an impact on the heart of the story. But the pain that he felt when he found out the truth of the world in which he wasn't aware of? My heart shattered. I couldn't even begin to put myself in his shoes; to try and accept a reality that he wasn't able to protect Iris from.

Kennedy Ryan is the type of author that uses her platform to educate and entertain. She paints a horrid picture of filth and guilt, anger and malevolence. But she writes of bright lights, warm encompassing hearts and arms of solid gold. This book definitely made me take a deeper, personal look inside my own biases; my own thought processes. It stopped me dead in my tracks and pissed.me.off. But it also gave me the love and the emotions I've come to crave and expect from her stories. As usual, Kennedy nailed this one. I'm going to stop right here, because all the highlights and notes I made while reading could give me enough info for 4 reviews. Do yourself a favor and feel this book.

"There is no before. There is no after. Now gives birth to forever."
BEE

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~MEET KENNEDY RYAN~

I'm a wife, a mom, a writer, an advocate for families living with autism. That's me in a nutshell. Crack the nut, and you'll find a Southern girl gone Southern California who loves pizza and Diet Coke, and wishes she got to watch a lot more television. You can usually catch me up too late, on social media too much, or FINALLY putting a dent in my ever-growing To Be Read list!

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