Review: Good Boy by Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy (WAGs #1)


Note: This ARC was provided by the authors via Nina Bocci PR in exchange for an honest review.

The next four photos are of various dogs sticking their noses in my crotch. Beside me, Jess lets out a giggle. The music swells and one last shot fills the big screen. It's me holding a puppy in one hand, close to my face. I'd been letting the dog sniff me a little, but the photo was taken in a way that suggest we're sharing a kiss. 
The sound of a hundred and fifty female sighs fills the room. 
"Oh my God, Blake," Jess whispers in my ear, and I jolt when her lips brush my cheek. "You are...you're..." 
"I'm what?" I ask thickly. 
She squeezes my hand. "You're the best." 
Her praise makes my heart soar. Damn it. I've got it bad. 
I'm so fucking fucked.

Cheezus, but this was one good great frickin' fantastic novel! Good Boy is the first book in the spin-off series entitled WAGs. With the fan following that the original duet Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy gave the world--Him and Us--expectations were high for Blake Riley and Jessica Canning's much-awaited story. But no presh. Yep, this is Blake still rubbing off on me more than a month since I was privileged enough to read the advanced reader copy. And there was definitely a lot of rubbing going on between Blake and Jess, much to Jess's chagrin. From the moment these two met and got it going on in Us, I was itching to see how they would make out (pun not intended...or maybe subconsciously, it was...), especially since they seemed to be this totally mismatched pairing. Well, suffice it to say that I was more than satisfied with how their story played out. Tears, people--both from trying to contain my laughter in a public place (yeah, I didn't pay too much attention to the warning the authors had in the synopsis) and from those unexpectedly heartwarming snippets, especially the ones involving the dogs.

Jessica Canning wants to make sure her brother's wedding to his fiancé goes off without a hitch. The pressure she's put in herself has a lot to do with her proving to her family that she's capable of doing this. Throw into the mix the fact that her soon-to-be brother-in-law's fellow National Hockey League teammates and management are going to be in attendance, and she knows there's a lot on the line. The last thing she wants is to be distracted by Blake Riley, and what a distraction he is. She already allowed herself--not that she could have really done much to stop it--to partake in the hot hockey player once before. No more. She refuses to bring the cliche of the maid of honor (her) and the best man (him) hooking up. She just needs to be over and done with and move forward. Her focus is to get her life in order, and while she may have claimed to know what she wanted to do in the past, now, she's really, truly, absolutely positive nursing is the career path for her. But Blake seems to keep appearing that path of hers, and while he can oftentimes be an annoying hurdle in her way, Jess is beginning to think he's adorable too. Maybe.

This was the kind of romantic comedy read that had different levels of humor to it. There were times I snort-laughed, and then there were times I giggled. Other times, I couldn't stop the grin from spreading on my face. Good Boy is a feel-good novel because there's just no way you can't help but feel good while and after you read it. This was a story about taking chances--both in life and in love--and in finding your purpose. It's also about family and how family is there to accept and embrace you, flaws, finickiness, and all. Jess may have seemed like the more mature one between the two, but there Blake proved that there was way more to him than being a hockey pro with women volunteering to bear his children. The man wasn't as clueless nor as intellectually challenged as he may have seemed. Even if we were to admit that Jess was smarter than him, Blake always had heart and he never didn't have a mean bone in his body. Am I fangirling? Why yes. Yes, I am, and not just about Blake but about this book. Good Boy already had a spot reserved on my 2017 favorites list even reading it back in 2016. Five-plus stars. ♥

Release Date: 31 January 2017

Date Read: 24 December 2016

Learn more about Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy.

Purchase Good Boy on Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo.

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