Hockey player Penny Jones can't imagine a life outside of Seldon. Though she has tons of scholarship offers to all the best schools, the last thing she wants is to leave. Who'll take care of her absentminded gramps? Not her mother, who can’t even be bothered to come home from work, let alone deal with their new tenants next door.
Penny’s not interested in dealing with Bishop’s crappy attitude, and Bishop’s too busy sneaking pills to care. Until he starts hanging out with Gramps and begins to see what he’s been missing. If Bishop wants a chance with the fiery girl next door, he’ll have to admit he has a problem and kick it. Too bad addiction is hard to kick…and Bishop’s about to run out of time.
First Impressions!
I realised straight away that Out of Play was Young Adult not New Adult whoops! I'm already intrigued by Bishop's backstory!
What I loved:
Setting- Once again I absolutely loved the Alaskan setting! I loved the sense of wilderness especially with the cabins Bishop and Greg stayed in and the way Penny's house was described. I liked reading more about Ice Hockey and how it all worked etc. I want to go sledding and muck around on snow machines, it all sounds like a blast! I think Alaska is one of my favourite settings!
Penny- I really liked Penny. She was definitely a tough girl seeing as she seemed to have the whole Hockey team wrapped around her finger and owed at Ice Hockey! I loved how compassionate and caring she was to her family and friends especially Gramps. It was refreshing to read a different female lead!
Bishop- Bishop made for unusual rock star, he only really liked the playing aspect of his musical success which had led to an unfortunate addiction. I found him endearing and witty. His struggle with addiction was so realistically portrayed from his inability to accept the depth of his issue to the self destruction tendencies it stemmed from. I liked how Bishop's thought pattern highlighted this and showed the depth of the addiction whether or not Bishop realised. Without spoiling the end I loved that he had the determination and courage to do what he needed to do for his own wellbeing.
Side Cast- As usual a well crafted and complex side cast! I could write about each individual team member but we'd be here forever! I loved how they respected Penny's talent and thought so highly of her and how they treated Bishop with cautious friendly competitiveness which was fun to read. Mike was such a caring best friend, I loved how he always tried to put Penny first even with his girlfriend because of her family issues and their friendship. I think Mike represented what Penny wanted and saw for herself before she met Bishop and it was interesting to compare him to Bishop.I really respected Becca, she must really love Mike to put up with being second to Penny and even though Penny obviously intimidated her I liked that she had the courage to confront her. Gramps was my favourite character, his plotline was tragically realistic for anyone but he remained upbeat and witty! I loved his love of music and how accepting he was of Bishop. I also adored Gary, he treated Bishop more like a younger brother than a burden. He threw himself into helping Bishop and committed himself to it with such passion I think Bishop had to realise his problems!
What I didn't love as much:
Los Angeles- I wanted to see more of Bishop in LA! Whether as a flashback to his past or a bigger hint into his career progression I just wanted more!
Penny's Mum- I did not like her! I found her selfish and highly hypocritical of Penny. I couldn't believe that she would leave Penny to cope with all the home issues while she swanned around!
Rating!
I loved the Alaskan setting, all the characters and their complexities!
Have you read Out of Play?
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx
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