The Winning Score

The Playmakers Series Hockey Romance, Book 4

By: G.K. Brady

Narrated by: Marcio Catalano, Samantha Brentmoor

Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

She can’t stand him. The feeling is mutual. Can they make it through quarantine together?

Quinn Hadley only does one thing as well as he plays hockey—wheeling the ladies. He’s the envy of his teammates. With puck bunnies on speed dial in every city, he never spends a night alone unless it’s by choice. He has a certain type—hot, blond, and easy. So when he meets Sarah Nelson, bagging her is nowhere on his radar. Not only is she a brunette, but her fiery, take-no-prisoners style is a turn-off. Plus, she’s his teammate’s sister and totally off-limits.

But his disabled mother—who’s just been foisted on him—loves Sarah. And not only is his mom methodically ruining his sweet bachelor lifestyle, but she keeps firing every caregiver Quinn hires for her. So when COVID-19 puts everyone on lockdown, Quinn offers Sarah an opportunity she can’t refuse, despite the warning bells clanging in his head.

Sarah Nelson is fleeing a devastating breakup and has nowhere to go but to her brother’s place in Denver. An engineer by training, she needs a job pronto so she can yank herself back up on her own two feet. But COVID-19 stops her dead in her tracks. So when Quinn Hadley offers her a temporary job making stupid money, she has a hard time refusing—despite the fact she has to live under the same roof with a guy who turns her stomach. She’s had too much experience with charmers like him, and Quinn Hadley is the biggest charmer of all. With a track record to prove it. But it’s the other side of Quinn she never expects, and it’s far more lethal than his public persona.

When Mr. Smooth and Ms. Prickly shelter in place together, not even his mansion is big enough to contain the fireworks. These two are sparks colliding with gas: combustible and explosive.

Someone’s bound to get burned.

©2020 G.K. Brady (P)2023 G.K. Brady

Great hockey romance!

The Winning Score is the fourth book in The Playmakers series and my first book by this author. Quinn is that sexy hockey player living his best life. He takes good care of his mother, who needs assistance in the home due to Parkinsons. Sarah is an engineer who is currently out of work and living with her brother after escaping a cheating liar. She is also that forbidden fruit that is the teammates sister who ends up working for him. They have an opposites attract relationship of avoidance until he hires her to care for her mother and they end up sheltering in place when the world turns upside down. They have great chemistry and their banter is excellent! Throw in a bit of a mystery with some suspense and you have a great 4-star story! I plan to go back and listen to the rest of the series.

Samantha Brentmoor is her typical fabulous self and does a wonderful job bringing Sarah to life. Marcio Catalano is a new narrator to me and I enjoyed his voice and performance. They fit well together and both did a great job with all of the secondary characters as well.

Fireworks Can Be Romantic

The fourth book in "The Playmaker Series Hockey Romance" was very entertaining. Family difficulties have caused Quinn Hadley to become his disabled mother's caregiver. Upon meeting Sarah Nelson, Quinn's mother liked her, so Quinn decided to offer Sarah a job to help with his mother's care. This story was based on two of my favorite tropes: forced proximity and enemies-to-lovers. I enjoyed the sparkle of Sarah's personality and the sizzling repartee of the characters. There were some steamy descriptions. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series. Marcio Catalano's and Samantha Brentmoor's dual narrations added to the enjoyment of the story. I was given a free copy of the audiobook, and I have voluntarily posted this review.

Great Read

Quinn and Sarah are perfect together. I loved the mystery in the book of who was stalking them, not what I expected. Quinn’s mom is intriguing, she knew right from the beginning how perfect they would be together. Archer, Sarah’s dog, helped everyone in his own way. Sarah bothered me at times, but I truly enjoyed how her character developed and her decisions in the end. Quinn grew as well, but I loved how much he cared for his mom. I highly recommend you meet these characters and see how they found love during the pandemic.
The narrators were very good. The narrators really helped you connect with the characters. It was very entertaining.

I received a copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Fun characters and great story

This was a fun story that handled Covid in a really good way. The characters were great, their bantering had me laughing and the story flowed so well. The narrators were excellent and I look forward to more books in this world.

Great Audiobook!

The narrators did a great job on this book. Really brought Quinn and Sarah's characters to life. I really enjoyed listening to this book. This is based around the start of the pandemic so it is relatable. Quinn is a cocky, playboy hockey player and Sarah is his teammates sister who is going through some life changes. The banter between these two is hilarious. There is a fine line between love and hate and these two walk it. All the characters are likeable. I love Quinns mom. Another great book in this series. Definitely a 4.5 star book.

I was sent a free audiobook and am voluntarily leaving this honest review.

Great Close Proximity Romance

As this author was new to me, this listen was narrator-driven as I adore both Samantha Brentmoor and Marcio Catalano’s works. I thought Samantha was terrific in the role of surly, fed up with suave playboys, standoffish Sarah Nelson. Marcio gave a great performance as the grumpy, young, flirty, puck-bunny chaser Quinn. While at times I didn’t love these characters in their unstable landscape and slow-burn, acerbic dynamic, I thought Samantha and Marcio complemented each other beautifully. Navigating love in a bubble with an ailing mother and outside dangers certainly made for a scintillating romance.

The narrators are perfectly cast—the MMC a little deep and rough, the FMC a little sweet but still sassy.

Thanks to Home Cooked Books for the ALC of this beautiful story/audiobook and the chance to give my candid review.

The Winning Score
by G.K. Brady

(book 4 in the Playmakers series but totally works as standalone).

Narrated by Marcio Catalano & Samantha Brentmoor

Story Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
Audiobook Rating: 4.5/5
Overall: 4.5/5

What I’m Starry-Eyed Over:
🤩 Hockey romance, teammate’s big sister (now prickly sister), workplace romance, forced proximity.
🤩 When Quinn’s mom requests Sarah to be her caregiver. Oh, my goodness, she’s adorable.
🤩 Pet/therapy dog beauty—Archer is the sweetest!
🤩 Such a clever and brave attempt at a Covid pandemic timeline.
🤩 Enemies-to-lovers banter.
🤩 Quinn’s mom’s reaction to Sarah calling Quinn Sparky: “Oh, that’s priceless.” Quinn’s mom is the best side character, adding such fun.
🤩 Smutty romance book read-aloud time—love it!
🤩 “I’m not sweetheart. I’m sunshine.” Great nicknames. Quinn also calls her Toots sometimes.
🤩 When Quinn takes care of Sarah and starts calling her babe.
🤩 Slow burn that is so worth it—some jealousy fireworks and protective love.
🤩 “Because I can’t take my eyes off you.”
🤩 The detailed closet of mirrors—so stinkin’ hot and might be my favorite scene.
🤩 The suspense part made for an interesting plot and actually made me nervous more than once, all while knowing there would be an HEA.
🤩 I love when the MCs become the best versions of themselves with and because of each other.
🤩 The narrators are perfectly cast—the MMC a little deep and rough, the FMC a little sweet but still sassy.

What I’m Wishing/Dizzy About:
💫 The ending is super cute and wonderfully entertaining. I wish there was more physical closeness (steam) after the time apart

Good story !

“The Winning score” is the fourth book in this series. The story takes place during covid and is well written! I like main characters : Sanah and Quinn (and Sanah’s dog too) This audiobook brought to life two really good narrators ( I like their narration and voices)! If you like sport and romance this audiobook is for you 😀

Great listen

This is the 4th book in the series, was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved it. It's got one of my favorite tropes, brother's friend along with enemies to lovers romance. I LOVE sports romance, but especially hockey. It takes place during the pandemic, I loved how well the author wrote this.

The narration was great, Samantha Brentmoor and Marcio Catalano did an amazing job bringing these characters and their story to life. They seemed to really understand the character and portrayed them perfectly.

Quinn & Sarah!

Sarah has moved in with her brother Gage. Breaking up with her lying, cheat of a boyfriend, she is looking to start over. And then it hits. Covid-19. Lockdown has the family squashed into a small house, tripping over each other and no privacy. Quinn, one of Gage's teammates gives her an out. His mother who needs assistance at home has taken a liking to Sarah and her dog, and Quinn is offering a job to help out with her, including room and board. She and Quinn have been at odds, after all, he is a confident jock, with a playboy reputation. There is no way she wants to be near him. The offer is just too good to pass up,and our story begins. Quinn is quite the woman, and I love her tenacity. She is strong willed, a joy around Quinn's mom and her heart is in the right place. It's just a matter of getting around the hurt. Quinn is realizing what life is really about. Family and love come to the forefront and it's wonderful to see him evolve. Lastly, GK Brady's look into the life of a woman who at her prime is fighting with a debilitating disease is not only relevant but handled in a way that is compassionate. I loved this thread as it was weaved into the story. Quinn has turned out to be one of my favorites on the team and I can't wait to see who else I will get to meet!

The narration team of Samantha Brentmoor and Marcio Catalano bring a whole other level enhancing this sports romance. Brentmoor is a favorite, and each time she performs, she brings a true feeling to her characters. Sarah is a woman with a lot of emotions going on, and each one is evident and realistic. Catalano adds a bit of sensuality to Quinn's personality with an easy, warm tone and easily transforms him from his playboy ways. This collaboration gave a wonderful performance, hours of entertainment and joy to my ears.