GUILTY AS CHARGED (HOLLY SCHINDLER)

I’m guilty.  I’ve written my own summer romance.  PLAYING HURT is the story of two former athletes: Chelsea’s basketball career ends abruptly after an injury on the court.  And Clint’s girlfriend is killed in a car accident on her way to his hockey tournament; afterward, his head is no longer in the game, and he has to hang up his skates.  Chelsea and Clint meet when Chelsea’s dad takes the family on a vacation to the Minnesota resort where Clint works…and their unexpected romance winds up helping them both heal for good.

The story has not been without controversy among bloggers.  Mostly because Chelsea has a boyfriend waiting for her back home (Gabe) when she has her love affair with Clint.  I suppose I could have taken the easy route and made Chelsea boyfriend-less when she heads out on vacation.  But to me, an important subplot is learning the difference between loving someone vs. being IN love with someone.  Chelsea thinks she’s in love with her boyfriend…until she meets Clint.  

I do read my reviews online…mostly because each book is a learning process, and a good portion of the learning, I think, comes from my readers.  What PLAYING HURT taught me is that some (and by some, I mean a lot) of readers have to like a character to like a book.  This was completely new to me—I’ve never had to like a main character to enjoy the book.  Ever.  But it’s a lesson I’m not soon to forget.

…I also tend to remember the “mixed bags”—the reviews filled with loves and hates (they seem more honest to me).  Here’s one of my faves (lifted from Goodreads):

This book was very well-written by an obviously talented writer. The plot is well-developed and the characters multi-dimensional, with backstories of their own and true-to-life action. But something about this book leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

Playing Hurt is about a girl who cheats on her boyfriend over the summer with her personal trainer. Obviously there's a lot more to the story, but that's the central plotline. Chelsea is portrayed as a sympathetic character, like her actions were justified. And I had a hard time with that.

Part of why this was so difficult to read was that everything in me wanted to side with Chelsea--and I had to take a step back and look at her actions, separate from her character, to judge what was going on. She's doing something she knows is wrong and the reader has to realize that on her own time--it's not implicitly stated. You have to separate the character from her actions.

Overall, as I said, this is a fantastic book. But it is not an easy read. It'll stick with you.

Love that last line.  Mission accomplished.