Review- Spiked by Jennifer Lane

Spiked on Goodreads

 BOOK SUMMARY:

They say
University is the time
To find yourself
But I don’t need to find myself
Just want to find you 

After watching his older siblings find their love matches at Highbanks University, Mateo Ramirez feels unlikely to follow in their footsteps. What girl would want him? Unlike his brother and sister, he battles diabetes and chooses music over sports. But at least he can write songs about his life—and the girl who caught his eye when their parents ran against each other for US President.

Hey, chica! Come conmigo
And baby, why don’t we go
Down under the bridge to the water
With you it can only get hotter 

Jessica Monroe is a talented swimmer who dreams of representing Team USA at the Olympics. When she earns an athletic scholarship to Highbanks, she’s excited to attend the same school as the cute boy she met two years ago: Mateo. Too bad he’s not around when a teammate spikes her drink. Jessica may never trust men again.

Trust
Is a hard-to-earn thing
Just
Try to keep listening

Swallow
Down all of the unjust
Hollow
My chest, my heart will bust 

College years are the time to shake off the past and find your future. But will that future find Mateo and Jessica together? Dive in and immerse yourself in the eagerly anticipated conclusion to Jennifer Lane’s Blocked trilogy.

Release date: October 1st 2016

Published by: Psyched Publishing

Page numbers: 285

My review of Blocked (Blocked #1)
My review of Aced (Blocked #2)

REVIEW: 

"If you liked author Jennifer Lane's Blocked, you will love Aced." This is what I had said in my review for Aced, the second book in the Blocked series. Now I don't really know what stage comes after love, but whatever that is, you will feel that after reading Spiked. Aced still remains my favourite, but the last book in the series, Spiked was just as good as Blocked and an extremely satisfying conclusion to what has become one of my most favourite New Adult series.

Spiked is the story of the youngest children in the Democratic and Republican families, Jessica and Mateo. Their siblings got their achievements and happily ever afters in their respective novels, and while their stories were lovely, I was always curious about Lucia and Alejandro's younger brother Mateo because he seemed like such a nice and quiet boy. And when I got to know that he would be paired with Dane's little sister Jessica, I could not wait to see what Jennifer Lane would put out for us. Well, it goes to say that, like always, Jennifer didn't disappoint because this book was so bloody good.

I feel sad that this series is over, because I love how each book doesn't just focus on the main couple, but on the most important families in America. It's great to get a bit of everything like politics, sport, drama, family, friendship, psychological issues, illnesses and love in one book as that makes it so much more interesting and highly entertaining. Jennifer Lane has a knack for taking up a serious subject and portraying it in a way that is both important, from an awareness point of view and light, in the way that is it incorporated in a contemporary fiction book. 

I feel like the biggest problem with books that I love is that I cannot stop talking about it. I mean, it's been three paragraphs and I haven't said anything about our main characters, Mateo and Jessica yet. It goes to say that I loved them both. While they are part of very important and prestigious families, they both seemed so normal and all the stuff they went through made them relatable and comforting. Jessica and Mateo were both total sweethearts and it was hard not to love them as individuals and even more as a couple, because they were just so perfect for each other; almost like magnets.

Spiked, just like Blocked and Aced, was a great read with a nice message. With this series, Jennifer Lane has made me genuinely appreciate the physical and mental intensity of sports people, the strength of people with physical, medical, psychological or basically any problems or issues, and a good romance; the latter being something I'm not too fond of, but hey, there's a first for everything. I don't normally furiously recommend books, but I would definitely recommend this series to everyone, because aside from being entertaining, it's important as well.

*Note: A copy of this book was provided by Jennifer Lane via Raven Publicity in exchange for an honest review. We thank them.

Buy the book: AMAZON

Review- Blocked by Jennifer Lane

Goodreads Summary:

College freshman Lucia Ramirez has a secret crush on Dane Monroe. He’s a tall drink of water — blond, brash, and one hell of a volleyball player.¡Híjole! Lucia hopes her volleyball scholarship to his school will make him notice her.

Too bad what’s noticeable is Dane’s obvious hatred for Lucia. Her family’s politics contradict everything he stands for. And politics are front and center in both their families. Dane’s mother is about to face Lucia’s father in the race for US President. 

When Secret Service throws them together, Dane can’t deny his frustrating attraction to Lucia’s athletic curves and sweet faith in the world. Amid the intense pressure of college athletics and presidential politics, can opposites not just attract, but overcome overwhelming odds to be together? Or do their differences block their match from the start?

REVIEW:

*NOTE: We (The Readdicts) received a copy of Blocked by Jennifer Lane from AToMR Tours in exchange for an honest review. We thank the author and the tour company for the book! 

I took so long to read Blocked that I thought about giving it up more than once. But because it's a book by Jennifer Lane whose Streamline was a great read that I really liked, I decided to take my time with Blocked and trust me, it was worth the wait, although I really really wish we got to know the final results of the elections. I do have my theory on who wins, and I love books that end abruptly, but this time, I really wanted to know. The slow pace of my reading (which really had nothing to do with the story, but my pure laziness) and the abrupt ending are the only two negatives that I can come up with. 

Blocked is the story of two star athletes Dane Monroe and Lucia Ramirez who also happen to be the children of the two governors who are contesting for the US presidential elections. Politics and sports are two topics that I find very interesting so that there is a great combination. I really liked the glimpse into the lives of Dane and Lucia who are living in the same apartment for safety purposes, who in spite of being the children of such high profile people, were simple and had normal issues like you and I do. They were both great individuals and made for a great pair. The chemistry between the two was quite sizzling and hot. 

Lucia was a really nice girl. I got her whole eating disorder issue, but I failed to understand why a determined and strong girl would let herself be demotivated that way. Dane was a great guy who appeared quite the jerk at first, but made up for all his mistakes and stupidity later on by showing how great he is. Both the protagonists gave importance to their respective siblings and family which I loved so much. 

In Blocked, we already have two topics that form a major part of newspapers and it's not just that, there's secret service, competition, separation, media, issues like alcoholism, eating disorders, domination, blood sugar, etc. that make it such a realistic read. Not to mention, heaps of knowledge since we get inside scoops and even some psychological know-hows. So Blocked is basically packed with reality. The importance given to family was really appreciative as well. I found this one to be a great read. 

RATING: