Review: Perfect Game

Perfect Game by Casey Cameron
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

*~~*ARC kindly provided by the author to me in exchange for an honest review *~~*

“Hate the player, love the game…or was that the other way around?”

Research biologist Neil Parkinson had to give up a lot in pursuit of his Ph.D–his friends, his music, his home town–but the one thing he managed to hang on to was Legendary Pairs, the hyper-competitive collectible card game that has propelled so many nerds just like him to fame and fortune. With a new job in a new city, loneliness drives him out of his apartment and into The Ogre’s Den–a haven for local players, amateur and pro alike. Neil never aspired to be a professional gamer, but that was before he met Robin.

“Why even play, if you don’t play to win?”

Robin Abboud is cocky, brash, argumentative…and absolutely gorgeous. He may be a lowly caterer with a crappy car, but this game is the one place where he’s a top dog, and boy does he know it. Robin’s end-game goal is to play in the Legendary Pairs Pro Tour; he’s got the skill to do it, and from the moment he meets Neil, he’s convinced Neil does too. His flirty bravado gets under Neil’s skin like nothing else, but he runs so hot-and-cold that Neil can’t figure out if the two of them are competitors, friends…or something more.

“Don’t tell me this is just a game to you. I know better.”

When Robin convinces Neil to join him on a road trip to a major tournament, there’s more on the line than just the cash prize. Even as the two of them clash on the field of the tournament, Neil’s feelings for Robin are growing impossible to ignore. But could Robin ever feel the same way? The longer they spend together, the more Neil risks showing his whole hand. Is a perfect match in the cards for these two, or will their in-game rivalry tear them apart?

Perfect Game is a 25,000 word stand-alone romance novella with lots of heat, deliciously nerdy sweetness, and a happily-ever-after ending with no cliffhangers.

Oh, this was actually really cool with the card game topic and the pleasant character. It is somekind new to read book about a nerdy, geeky topic like this and I was instantly absorbed by it. The card games where great included in the whole book, it never felt weird or too boring to read about it. Quite the opposite, the duels helped to rise the tension between the two character. And you can say they were quite remarkable.

Both guys were really unique in their way and I was really enjoying the story. :3 Robin and Neil have both their pros and cons and especially Robin shows a strong trait of being competitive and losing isn’t fitting right with him. So he acts sometimes in the book a bit immature and childish. His behaviour is one argument between Neil and Robin and helps to spark up the tension.

This is my second novel by the author and this proved I will read further title by her. At least I’m very interested in the contemporary ones. I really hope the next novel is as pleasant as this but if it comes like this I’m confident. Really nice to see this will be a series. :3

5 out of 5 stars. :3

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