Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Rookie Mistake
SERIES: On the Board
AUTHOR: L.A. Witt & Anna Zabo
NARRATORS: Michael Ferraiuolo
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 16 hours and 36 minutes
RELEASE DATE: July 11, 2022
BLURB:
Rookie forward Isaac Rivera is still finding his footing in the big leagues where he’s no longer the best player on the roster. It’s a whole new world, especially now that several of his hockey idols have become teammates. Friends, even.
There’s one who’s more than a hockey idol, though…and he might end up being more than a friend.
Julien Landry is a powerhouse on the ice. In eight years, he’s become one of the league’s top defensemen and the heartthrob everyone wants to bed. But fallout from a painful mistake as a rookie, followed by years of rough-and-tumble hookups, have him itching for something more.
When a connection sparks between him and Isaac, he discovers what he’s been missing: someone he can trust with his body and his heart. As long as Isaac and Julien keep the heat between them off the ice, what could go wrong?
But Julien’s past is never far behind him, and when it comes crashing in, he might lose everything—his career, his friends, and the first person he’s ever really loved.
CW: discussions of past abuse and sexual assault
REVIEW:
Isaac is in his rookie season as a professional hockey player. He’s been in awe of men who are now his teammates. Especially Julien Landry – his crush from his HS years 😉 Julien isn’t that much older than Isaac, but their path to the team was much different and Julien was barely 19 when he joined the league. Julien is intrigued by Isaac and he wants him to relax and play the best hockey he can. And he can’t say he’s not attracted.
Julien is reluctant to start anything with Isaac because of his past. Isaac knows that there’s something that Julien isn’t telling him but he’s not going to push Julien beyond what he wants to share. Their relationship takes off with a bang – literally 😉 But the more they spend time together, the better things get. Isaac isn’t expecting the heat and chemistry between them. He’s not sure he can be the man Julien needs him to be, so he does some research 😀
They keep their relationship on the DL for a while because Julien doesn’t want to influence anything about Isaac’s rookie season. But it gets harder and harder to hide their true feelings – especially when Julien’s best friends and teammates already have it figured out. Elias and Nicky are worried at first, but realize that Isaac is actually good for Julien who has had nothing but one night stands for years at this point.
Julien’s ex is a player on another team seems to have it out for Julien. He took Julien – a teenager – under his wing – and a lot more when Julien was a rookie. And he took a lot more 🙁 This guy was a real piece of work. And even all these years later, it’s still a problem. He digs under Julien’s skin repeatedly and he has been a gaslighter forever. There is a lot of even Julien’s teammates and best friends don’t even know.
Isaac and Julien are going strong, but the shadow of Julien’s past and the hold his ex has is the specter that is a shadow over their future. When they come out as a couple. Everything is supportive – except the ex. When things get really bad and come to a head, despite Julien’s withdrawal, his friends and his boyfriend aren’t going to let go.
Whew! This was a lot! Isaac and Julien are a really good match despite Julien’s issues. It’s clear that they are compatible in every way and that they are really good together. They support each other in all ways. Julien’s ex has emotionally abused him and manipulated and gaslighted him for years – on the DL. His self-esteem has taken a beating. The cruelty and manipulation were epic. Despite having a supportive family and boyfriend, Julien still fights for his self-worth. Isaac and his friends have to do everything in their power to get Julien to see the truth – and it takes some doing. I found this to be a heartbreaking but realistic portrayal of what ongoing emotional abuse and gaslighting can do to a person. Despite knowing intellectually that something isn’t true, the target of the abuse is so beat down that they believe it emotionally and are paralyzed from getting away from the abuser or discounting the behavior as lies and manipulation. The authors do not downplay how much work it takes to deal with that kind of relationship and long-lasting and deeply engrained damage that has been done. Julien’s insecurities are so much a part of his entire personality which makes him more easy for the ex to use against him. I wanted to cry for Julien after the whole story comes out. I adored Julien’s family and Isaac’s family and bestie Darian also. While this is indeed a long one, there is so much to cover in order to really build the dynamic of this couple and the past that has so much sway over Julien. Well done and highly recommended for those who are looking for a story with a really hard fought victory over a difficult past to reach a well deserved happy ending.
This long and difficult story was a tour de force for Michael Ferraiuolo. There is so much pain and fear in this story and it’s a really emotional arc. There are a lot of accents as well. I am in awe of this performance that is so well done over the many hours of this story. There are plenty of steamy moments. There is humor and fun with the families and friends. There are many many stressful moments and Mr. Ferraiuolo put so much emotion into all of them perfectly. While there are many difficult moments for Julien, the performance provides another level to the pain. I kept listening because I NEEDED that happy ending 🙂 Well done to the authors and this favorite narrator. Harrowing story and beautiful performance perfectly married in this audio book.
RATING: 
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