The second book in the Juniper Falls series by Julie Cross is titled, BREAKING THE ICE. This contemporary young adult novel has everything you need to stay warm in this cold winter weather. A handsome hockey player, loads of drama, sweet romance, family relationships, and self-discovery making this a must-read young adult novel. What more could you ask for?
BREAKING THE ICE is one of those romance novels that never goes the way you would expect. Cross draws in immediately and immerses you into the story right from the start. The characters are well developed, smart, sexy, and have many secrets they want to keep hidden. Haley is what many call the hometown sweetheart who grew up in the spotlight as a shallow princess. Somewhere along the way she matures and becomes an amazing individual. Fletcher is full of life, loves to have fun, is extremely smart, sexy, and has secrets he wants no one to know. What happens when Haley is determined to unravel the secrets of his past? Can they remain friends or will things grow into something much more?
While reading this fascinating story, you will get a feel of The Breakfast Club because of the way these two are thrown together in a summer class. As the summer heats up so does the chemistry shared between Haley and Fletcher. Cross writes with such a loving hand making it easy to fall in love with the characters and experience the sparks they have for each other. She created the setting of summer school which is the perfect backdrop for the heated exchanges.
Overall, a fun, feisty romantic read that has everything it takes to make BREAKING THE ICE a truly memorable read that will stick with you long after you read the last page. This is a book you will read again and again.
Haley Stevenson seems like she's got it all together: cheer
captain, "Princess" of Juniper Falls, and voted Most Likely
to Get Things Done. But below the surface, she's struggling
with a less-than-stellar GPA and still reeling from the loss
of her first love. Repeating her Civics class during summer
school is her chance to Get Things Done, not angst over
boys. In fact, she's sworn them off completely until college.
Fletcher Scott is happy to keep a low profile around Juniper
Falls. He's always been the invisible guy, warming the bench
on the hockey team and moonlighting at a job that would make
his grandma blush. Suddenly, though, he's finding he wants
more: more time on the ice, and more time with his
infuriatingly perfect summer-school study partner.
But leave it to a girl who requires perfection to shake up a
boy who's ready to break all the rules.
"Good morning, sunshine." Haley flashes me a devious grin.
"What a night, huh? Four hundred and eighty-two dollars. Is
that what you usually pull for thoseβ¦odd jobs?"
Oh God, this is bad. Really bad. Like moving to Duluth to
live with Mom bad. My stomach twists, and I stumble out of
bed, heading straight for the bathroom. I don't even get the
door all the way shut before I'm leaning over the toilet,
puking up way too many shots of rum. Never again. Never again.
I wait for the heaving to stop before flushing the toilet
and leaning over the sink to rinse my mouth. Still a bit
unsettled, I sit down on the bathroom floor and lean against
the tub. I almost forget Haley's presence in my house until
the door creaks all the way open and she's standing in front
of me, holding a glass of water.
She hands it to me, surprisingly lacking the judgmental look
I'd been expecting.
"Thanks," I croak out after taking a long drink. "Sorry.
About sleeping through our study session or project session
or whateverβ¦"
Haley squats down and assesses me. "Your eyes are really
red. You're not a drug addict, are you?"
"Shit. My contacts." That would explain the glued-together
feeling my eyes had this morning. And the fact that they're
burning right now. I pull myself to my feet and fumble
around in the medicine cabinet for my solution. Relief hits
the instant my eyes are free of those things. But the world
blurs in front of me. Haley walks out of the bathroom then
pops back in, holding my glasses.
"I didn't know you wore contacts," she says.
"Just to play hockey."
"And for work, right?"
The grin I saw right when I woke up returns to her face.
This little screwup on my part is going to cost me. Big
time. I put my glasses on and spin to face Haley. "I went
out with my older brother last night after work. He likes to
mess with me."
She smooths out the grin and offers a nod. "Okay, so your
older brother likes to mess with you by covering your body
in lipstick, stuffing thongs into your pockets, and
droppingβ¦oh, like, four hundred dollars into your pants.
That makes perfect sense. I don't have a brother, but if I
did, I'm sure that's what he'd do to me."
Well, it is partly true. I hung out with Braden after work,
but we were still at work and there were lots of others
around, tooβmostly female others. And Paco. And Dannyβ¦I
think Rowdy, too.
"I'll tell you what, Fletch," Haley says, reaching around me
and turning the knobs on the shower. "I'll give you two
choicesβ¦one, you can tell me the truth about that little job
of yours and I'll leave you alone with your hangover. Or
two, you can clean yourself up and get your head together
and do some work with me, and I'll forget about the panties
and the money and the lipstickβ¦"
I doubt she'll forget anything, but I have to hold out hope
at least. I glance warily at her. "Option two. Definitely two."
The smirk on Haley's face is gonna be forever etched into my
memory. She knew I'd pick option two. She points to the
shower and gives me a little wave. "I'll be in the living
room hanging out with Vixen."
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