Until it Fades

 Author: K.A. Tucker

 Release Date: June 27, 2017

 Publisher: Atria Books

Format: paperback ARC

Pages: 356

Source: Simon&Schuster Canada

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Summary:

Twenty-four-year-old truck stop waitress and single mother Catherine Wright has simple goals: to give her five-year-old daughter a happy life and to never again be the talk of the town in Balsam, Pennsylvania: population two thousand outside of tourist season.

And then one foggy night, on a lonely road back from another failed attempt at a relationship, Catherine saves a man’s life. It isn’t until after the police have arrived that Catherine realizes exactly who it is she has saved: Brett Madden, hockey icon and media darling.

Catherine has already had her fifteen minutes of fame and the last thing she wants is to have her past dragged back into the spotlight, only this time on a national stage. So she hides her identity. It works.

For a time.

But when she finds the man she saved standing on her doorstep, desperate to thank her, all that changes. What begins as an immediate friendship quickly turns into something neither of them expected. Something that Catherine isn’t sure she can handle; something that Catherine is afraid to trust.

Because how long can an extraordinary man like Brett be interested in an ordinary woman like Catherine…before the spark fades? (Goodreads)

Review:

 *I received an advance copy of this book from Simon&Schuster Canada in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion*

Shockingly (and embarrassingly) enough, this is my first K.A. Tucker book…it will, however, NOT be my last. (Which is good because the lovely S&S folk provided me with a stack of her back list that is taking up most of a shelf by itself 😛 ) Everybody knows I love me some sports romance and, while this doesn’t have much of the actual sport in it (and I’m not really a hockey person…I know, I know *gasp* I’m so un-Canadian), who can resist a swoony hockey player?

I have to start this love-fest with the characters. Obviously, you’re supposed to adore, ship, and want to protect the two main characters. This is a romance after all. This happened…holy crap did I just ADORE Brett and Catherine. Together, apart, interacting with others. I loved them start to finish. What makes Until it Fades extra special is that I felt the same intense love for many of the secondary characters as well. Keith, Brenna, Misty, Lou, Brett and Catherine’s families…I became just as attached to them as I did to Brett and Catherine by the end. It felt like they were my own group of friends or a cast of characters from a show I’ve spent years watching. I was just as unprepared to let go of them as I was to let go of the people on Charmed and One Tree Hill.

The romance itself was also incredibly done. I’m glad I read most of this at home (and after I had moved out on my own) because a lot of squealing and flailing was involved. And no, I don’t mean figuratively. During the cute parts, of which there are many, I literally squealed and flapped my hands around like a crazed chicken. I shipped this so hard from the beginning because a) you can tell they’ll be super cute and b) Catherine totally deserves this sweet, hot hockey player after all she’s been through. The feelings/relationship also developed really well. There’s nothing worse than if something happens too fast and you’re left feeling like you missed something because “when did THAT happen?” or if it grows too slowly and you wonder if they even really like each other. The pace of them falling for each other fit with their histories and over all just felt right.

The pacing and writing style were great. I flew through this book and not once did I find myself looking at how much I’d read and feeling like I wasn’t making progress. In fact, I was progressing tooo fast when I didn’t want it to end. The writing in Until it Fades does a great job of making you feel like you’re living in the story.

Final Verdict: 

WHY HAVE YOU NOT BOUGHT THIS BOOK YET?! Seriously though, if romance, gorgeous hockey players, amazing characters, and feels are your kind of thing, pick this up. It’s the perfect mix of fluff and hardship and goes great with chilled rosé which seems to be the “it drink” for summer right now. Which means this should be your “it book” for summer. Oh…and Brett is mine. I don’t share. 😉