Long Shot: A Forbidden Basketball Standalone Romance (HOOPS Book 1)

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It ended at 78% on my kindle app and included another novella of the author's (I hate when they do that! It's not all 3 pointers and dazzling smiles from hot ballers - that's there of course too, don't worry. August is perhaps written too much as a saint but given how dark this book gets at times, his endless light is very much needed so I will forgive the author for his sometimes unrealistic perfection. And August is a standup guy and understands, until he realizes the next night at his game that Iris is dating his childhood nemesis.

I found this book brought an amazing insight and was written with great graphic detail into domestic violence and not only is it about physical but it also can have significant mental abuse. It was so heartbreakingly beautiful and was similar to It Ends With Us as they both have the topic of Domestic Violence. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. I understood where she was coming from with her past with her mom as well as her past with Caleb, but I didn't like how she treated the H or behaved at times. From award-winning author Kennedy Ryan comes the soul-gripping, unforgettable first installment of the Hoops trilogy.

It boggled my mind by the fact that YES, this book is FICTION, but the circumstances and the events that go on within the story is someone else’s reality, and that my friends, is scary as hell. Long Shot is brutal, raw and heartbreaking but it has to be cause it’s the truth given the topics this book centers around. And everything he stole from me like a petty thief, those things, every single one of them, I repossess. With no escape in sight, I seek the only freedom left to me—my thoughts, my dreams, and my memories. I told myself I was done a few times, but curiosity and a friend pushed me to pick up the book again, and again until I just couldn't.

I want to start by congratulating the author on doing everything right in the domestic violence front. Now from the teasers and posts the author has shared, I think most can surmise what this story is about and the tough subject it covers (a little more on that towards the end of this review). From the beginning it was clear she had no particular feelings for her boyfriend, so it felt like a contrived situation to me. I fell in love with Iris "Gumbo", an ill-fated girl, who tried so hard to believe in her love and family, just for the sake of her daughter. Check your trigger warnings because this story is heavy, and it's so well written that you feel - FEEL - all of her pain and self doubt, and despair.

The story tackles a tough topic in a way that reminds the reader that there's more than meets the eye when judging someone else's journey. I can't emphasize this enough, and I am not one to really give trigger warnings often but this book absolutely necessitates it. They end up spending the night talking and sharing more with each other than they're used to, but the night ends with Iris confessing that she has a boyfriend. My first disappointement with the book is that I couldn't connect with any of the characters prior to get into the gritty parts. There are so many things I want to say about him but I can’t because I do not want to give away any of the story.

The harrowing brutality of Iris's story left me torn between not being able to put it down and wanting to take a break. Of course we then have August and oh my this man is one of the most caring and sweet book boys I've ever come across. Her story broke me at times, it felt so real, because it is real for a lot of people, but it gave me hope. Kennedy skillfully elaborates this sentiment in this Raw story of two kindred spirits, misfits in the world. She's got the spirit of Mighty Mississippi in her, changing course, adapting and finally wreaking havoc.One thing to note, he didn't change throughout the story, his venom never diluted, just distilled to potency and for which I must applaud Kennedy.

Long Shot is a sports romance, my first time reading NBA, and it has also has the aspect of forbidden romance too. While August has embarked on his all-star life, studded with wealth and fame, Iris's perfect public relationship has become a nightmare behind closed doors.The topics of her books aren’t always easy, and this book had some especially brutal scenes involving domestic violence/rape. Also, this book talks about Hurricane Katrina and how so many families were broken apart and forced to flee New Orleans, and become refuges in their own country.