Contemporary Romance Review: The Player and The Pixie by L.H. Cosway & Penny Reid

The Player and The Pixie by L.H. Cosway & Penny Reid (Rugby #2)

Ecopy thanks to the authors

Synopsis from Goodreads
How can someone so smokin’ hot be so bad in bed? I mean, Sean Cassidy is absolute rubbish. RUBBISH. He is the epitome of walking, talking false advertising and I want a refund! Plus he’s an arsehole. So… what is wrong with me that I can’t stop thinking about him?

THE PIXIE

Lucy Fitzpatrick doesn’t like rugby.

As the little sister of Ireland’s most infamous rugby player, Lucy can’t seem to escape the championship-sized shadow cast by her big brother, or her mother’s frequent attempts to micromanage her future. Her rainbow hair is as free-spirited as her quest for inner peace, yet overbearing expectations keep bringing her down. And when she’s down, her compulsive little problem lands her in seriously big trouble.

THE PLAYER

Sean Cassidy is a cold-hearted brute… or so he’s been told. Frequently. By everyone.
His blonde locks, baby blues, and rock hard bod make ladies the world over drool with desire. As the rugby world’s second most infamous player, he should be basking in his success. But Sean has never been content settling for second place, and his frequent confrontations with Lucy’s big brother leave him cold. And when he’s cold, his compulsive little problem lands him in the lap of Lucy Fitzpatrick.

THE PLAN

Sean has a problem only Lucy can solve. Lucy has a problem only Sean can fix. The solution seems obvious: you scratch my back, and I’ll bail you out of jail. But when their business arrangement unexpectedly leaves Sean scorching hot and Lucy on the precipice of inner peace, can they convince the world—and Lucy’s big brother in particular—that this is the real deal?

Either way, both the Player and the Pixie are about to teach each other some pretty monumental lessons about family, life, but most importantly, love.

Amazon US/UK | Amazon kindle US/UK

 7/10

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 It's my second book by collaboration of L.H. Cosway and Penny Reid, and I have to admit that me and them as a team don't gel that well. I love Penny Reid on her own to bits. Everything she writes feels really organic to me, and while I can still see her particular brand of humor here, it's the sexual part of the relationship I found too awkward. (And I do know it was intentional.)



In the previous book in the series I had a minor issue with Annie and Ronan. Here Lucy and Sean are not terrible individuals on their own, but the sexual chemistry is all wrong. I'm sorry but it did nothing for me. I do feel really embarrassed about it, peeps, however I did enjoy the other aspects of the book.

Lucy is a lovely heroine, really bright and full of flaws. She is trying hard, but her emotions are all over the place and she has issues. Sean despite portraying himself as a major asshole in reality is a caring, but prideful man who'd rather keep making mistakes and pretend that everything is as it should be instead of admitting that he doesn't know something and ask for help. I do know people like that so I could actually understand him pretty well. *wink*

*spoilers ahead*

Yes, both were interesting, but the romance... OMG, it was cringeworthy! It was like they were on different wavelengths. The scene in the bathrooom on its own made me facepalm. Seriously? I would be absolutely mortified. And the really unimaginative sex talk.. Sean was like a puppy. So eager to please, so virgin-like in his inexperience. I guess this was major turn off for me. I just couldn't understand how he went through all the years of sexual encounters without rectifying his problem. And then, Lucy's magical hoo-hah saved him. 

Anyway, this is me. I hope you fare batter with The Player and The Pixie. By the way, Lucy's friend was awesome, and I hope he gets his own book.

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Эта моя вторая книга, вышедшая из под пера Пенни Рид и Л.Х. Козвэй, и я должна признаться, что вот что-то всегда меня в этом партнёрстве раздражает. Пенни Рид сама - умничка, и книги я её обожаю. Они вопринимаются очень органично и получают от меня всегда высокую оценку.

В партнёрстве с Козвэй характерный для Рид юмор ещё чувствуется, но вот интимная сторона отношений почему-то каждый раз оказывается грубой и неуклюжей в сравнении.

Люси и Шон - хорошие персонажи сами по себе, интересные, яркие, неординарные. Но вместе у них ноль сексуального притяжения. Мне постоянно за них было стыдно, настолько постельные сцены между ними были неуклюжими. Люси- такая девочка-радуга, стремящаяся к просветлению и ищущая дзен. Однако она борется со своими внутренними демонами и страдает от клептомании. Шон культивирует имидж испорченного подонка-знаменитости, хотя в реальности он заботится о людях, что ему дороги и только чрезмерная гордыня заставляет его притворяться, что всё так, как и должно быть вместо того, чтобы попросить помощи и узнать что же он делает неправильно.

*впереди спойлеры*

Почему-то оба решают, что друг другу нравятся, только вот Шон - ужасен в постели, и никто, вот представляете? никто ему не сказал за все годы секса - почему. Только Люси с её магической вагиной его за один приход исправляет, и Шон превращается в чересчур воодушевлённого щенка, который постоянно пытается её удовлетворить. Серьёзно, такой сценарий был не для меня. Чего только стоит сцена в туалете... *содрогаясь*

Однако, отбросив этот аспект книги, остальное было довольно интересным, а в друга Люси я вообще влюбилась. Его книга должна быть интересной. В общем, читать на свой страх и риск.