Ami's Hoard

3.5 stars

This is a contemporary romance debut from Melanie Scott, who is otherwise known in a different genre (urban fantasy) as M.J. Scott. For a debut, I thought this book was pretty well-written, especially when it came to describing the business behind running a sports team. On the romance front, however, I admit I was a bit of on the fence about it.

All right, let me try to explain my like/dislike thoughts on this. Let’s start with what I really enjoyed from the book.

Alex Winters. Oh, yes, I couldn’t really find any faults with this man *laugh*. From the moment he walked into the bar and approached Maggie who was drowning her sorrow with tequila, I just liked him right off the bat. I thought Alex had what it takes to be both a passionate charming man when it came to romancing the girl, while at the same time, being a very good clearheaded businessman when it came to business. He was particularly good in presenting his case when he needed to explain why he (and his friends) wanted to save the New York Saints. Was Alex a devil like Maggie thought? Well, he was definitely an angelic devil in my book *grin*

I also liked the ‘back-stage’ nature of the sports presented here. This book was definitely more about what happened off-field, the stories about the ‘suits’ rather than the players. This included how Alex and his best friends, Lucas and Mal, took a look around the stadium, assessing the security aspect, and even cozying up the players to smooth the buy. It might not be an action-wise sports book, but nonetheless, it was still engaging for me.

Now, let’s talk about what I didn’t truly enjoy…

Character-wise, I found it rather difficult to sympathize with Maggie. At first, I could understand her being hurt with the decision that her father made. I would probably feel the same thing if I were someone who was very passionate into the team like Maggie was. However, over the course of the book, Maggie ended up being rather immature in my eyes. It was clear that her father and Alex didn’t yet trust her capability as a CEO; she was green and she didn’t really have the experience to be on the cut-throat deal side of business. For me, Maggie didn’t really do anything to prove that she was more than just the ex-owner’s daughter. She let emotions get ahead of cool-head and calculated thoughts.

There was one time – after the threat coming from a Texas businessman to contest Alex’s buy – that I thought would be a perfect time for Maggie to show everyone wrong, to come out with a proposal to work things through and counter the proposition, but nope, that didn’t happen. In fact, again, she showed that she let her feelings take over her brain. It was rather disappointing.

I also didn’t particularly enjoy how the potential threat was solved – Maggie called it a “hardball” move, but I’d like to call it cheap and an easy-way to deal with the problem. It felt abrupt in a deus-es-machine kind of away. It made me feel like the author herself didn’t know how to get out of the problem she created for the team.

Last but not least, well, I wasn’t 100% convinced with Alex and Maggie’s romance in the end. I thought the middle part was quite enjoyable, they did have great banter moments, and it seemed they were moving at the right pace. However, after the threat was introduced, the romance ended as abruptly as the ‘hardball’ move decision to save the team. I guess I would need more chapters to tie things up. I didn’t need an “I love you” moment – the lack of it was actually in tune with the nature of the story, but I wanted a tidier ending, I guess.

However, overall, I enjoyed the book and the introduction to the cast of characters. It was a good set up, and it made me feel involved with New York Saints and their new bosses. I am particularly happy to know that the second book of this series is coming soon (in December). I’m reserving my ticket to read that one.