Garrett - Book Review

By Sawyer Bennett

Synopsis

Carolina Cold Fury star Garrett Samuelson never wants to miss out on a single minute of fun. Whether he’s playing hockey, hanging out with friends, or walking the red carpet with a new date on his arm, he lives every day to the fullest. When he meets Olivia Case, he sees someone who’s exactly his type—confident, sexy, smart . . . his next fling. But the more he pursues her, the more Garrett shares a side of himself that other women don’t normally get to see.

Olivia has been keeping a secret. While Garrett lives for the next thrill, Olivia’s not sure she’ll live to see the next day. She’s undergoing treatment for some serious medical issues, and she doesn’t have time for a relationship with no guarantees—especially one with a hot-as-sin womanizer who won’t take no for an answer. But as she gets to know the real Garrett, Olivia can’t help falling for him . . . hard. To reveal the truth would mean risking everything—but you can’t score without taking the tough shots.

Review

Do you like reading romance novels about hot hockey players that play just as hard on the ice as they do off it? Do you like reading about men that start out as man-whores, but when the right woman comes along, she brings them to their knees quicker than a tripping? Yes? Then I have just one thing to say to you: Garrett. A million times Garrett.

Garrett is your typical 25yo professional athlete: famous, rich and most importantly, unattached. He’s happy with his lot in life and has no plans to change any time soon. Why would he when he can have a different woman every week? Enter Olivia, who is cool, calm, confident and sexy. She knows who he is, but doesn’t drop to her knees merely at the sight of him like so many other women. She knows his playboy ways and rejects his advances. But when Garrett sees something he likes, he goes after it and doesn’t give up easily.

Unfortunately for Garrett, Olivia has just been diagnosed with cancer and is about to start treatment. This has her thinking that she’s not in a position to start a new relationship. But then again, Garrett doesn’t do relationships, only sex. Needing to feel alive at a time when death could be knocking at her door, she figures Garrett can give her just what she needs.

Is it possible she wants what I want? To fuck ourselves into a coma?

When I reflect on this book, my main thought is that the relationship between Garrett and Olivia is so sweet and full of love and compassion. In Olivia’s time of need, Garrett steps us in every way and really shows her with his actions that he loves and cares for her, long before he ever tells her. There’s no mind games, no pushing and pulling, no back and forth that leaves you rolling your eyes. Except towards the end when Olivia pushes Garrett away for what she thinks is his own good. Silly woman. But every romance book seems to need that element to ensure the couple find their way to each other again and come out the other side stronger than ever.

I feel I should warn you about a scene where Olivia has a bone marrow aspiration and biopsy done. For those that have had similar procedures, you might find this unpleasant to read. I warn you because I felt the scene was quite descriptive and it caused a physical reaction in me. This scene reminded me of my first ever thyroid fine needle aspiration that I had done over a decade ago. Despite being a different procedure, it brought back those same physical reactions I suffered at the time: chattering teeth, shaking and sweating. I hated reading this part but I respect that Sawyer was able to pull this kind of reaction from me, and I think it just goes to show how well the scene was written.

I was expecting GARRETT to rip me apart emotionally given the cancer storyline, but it didn’t. To be honest, I’m not sure if that disappointed me or not. I can’t wait for ZACK (book 3) to come out in June, and given what happened to him in this book, I’m hoping for major water works when reading that one.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re riding my cock or throwing up in a toilet…I just want to be around you and get to know you better.”