Samara Reynolds has built a large following as a gamer under an anonymous screen name, and uses her skills as a DEIA consultant to advocate for equal representation in video games. When she posted a video critiquing the popular game Legendsfall, she knew she’d get a reaction from her fans, but the video leads to hundreds of female gamers critiquing the game and its company, Artemis Games. The only thing more unexpected than starting an online movement is getting a job offer from the handsome CEO of Artemis.
Aron Galanis has been on a mission to get his company certified to create gaming content for people with disabilities. When he sees Artemis trending online for all the wrong reasons, he’s determined to right his wrongs and offers the originator a mea culpa, as well as a job offer to overhaul the character options in Legendsfall.
Working together turns Aron and Samara from adversaries into allies, allies into friends, and after that—something more. But once their relationship goes public, will Aron and Samara be able to weather the storm and fight for their happy ending, or is it game over?
Release Date: Dec 12, 2023
Heat Level: Sensual
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Berkley
Price: $10.99
Samara is one of the top female gamers out there. She has built a following in the gaming community and even finds herself advocating for equality in the gaming world. Samara posts an honest critique of a popular game that immediately spreads through the community and attracts the attention of the CEO of the gaming company.
When Aron, the CEO of Artemis, reaches out to Samara, he doesn’t anticipate liking her. He wants to make sure his games get good reviews, and that Artemis can become certified in creating content for people with disabilities. He must move quickly to rectify this situation and offering Samara a position at his company seems like the perfect solution.
This is one of those examples where the story should be an enemies-to-lovers theme, but it is more friends to lovers. The two main characters immediately find themselves on common ground. They both are advocates for the things they love, and they both love games. I have to admit that I’m not a gamer and that is not what prompted me to want to read this one. I thought there would have been more tug and pull between Aron and Samara.
The initial concept of the book won me over. However, there seem to be too many distractions from the plot. The story read to me very scattered and didn’t focus enough on the chemistry and romantic relationship building of the couple. I wonder if the author did this because she had to create some conflict in the story. The gaming community wouldn’t accept them as a couple working together after Samara’s initial review.
Overall, it was a light story but not very memorable. Fans of games and contemporary romances in general may enjoy this one.
~ Samantha
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