Wicked Serve is the final book in the Beyond the Play series by Grace Reilly. The series consists of interconnected stand alone college sports romances. The first three books are the stories of the Callahan brothers, and this one centers around their little sister, Isabelle Callahan, and her situationship turned HEA with Nikolai Abney-Volkov. They are all interconnected standalones with recurring characters. I don't think you need to have read them all to enjoy this story, but it would deepen your appreciation of the relationships and side characters.
During her internship in NYC with a well known event planner, Izzy discovers the #1 perk of her new job is that her boss happens to have a super hot, distractingly sweet son who is more than willing to give her a "hot girl summer" fling.
This book is an emotional read. I love when a story has both emotional impact and piping hot spice. Both Nik and Izzy are dealing with the weight of familial expectations. She feels like the black sheep of an exceptionally gifted family of athletes who can't measure up, and he's not dealing well with his own past family trauma. The subject matter can feel heavy at times, but it's handled well in my opinion. I loved that the answers are to "do the work" for both of them. No shortcuts on this path. We really get to see these characters mature and grow into themselves. When they come together, it's sweet and spicy in all the best ways. I will certainly be adding more Grace Reilly to my TBR.
Thanks to Valentine PR, Avon Books, Netgalley, and Grace Reilly for the ARC opportunity.