This was my first book of the year, and it didn't disappoint!
*CONTAINS MILD SPOILERS*
“Challenges were only hard if you went into them expecting not to succeed.”
–Mariana Zapata
What Is It About?
If someone were to ask Jasmine Santos to describe the last few years of her life with a single word, it would definitely be a four-letter one.
After seventeen years—and countless broken bones and broken promises—she knows her window to compete in figure skating is coming to a close.
But when the offer of a lifetime comes in from an arrogant idiot she’s spent the last decade dreaming about pushing in the way of a moving bus, Jasmine might have to reconsider everything.
Including Ivan Lukov.
My Opinion
4.75/5⭐
I could not stop sobbing during the last third of the book. Sometimes I feel like something is broken inside me for how much I can cry with one book lol. Without a doubt, it was a good book, and I very much liked it. In the beginning, I had a hard time connecting with the book, especially with Jasmine. I did not relate to her personality, as she had too much confidence, and the way the author wrote her was a bit childish to me. Nonetheless, as the book move forward, I realized she was this strong and confident woman with some of the same mental issues I have. Her problem with the feeling of not being enough and her relationship with her family (especially with her dad) was something I could relate to.
It is with these types of books that I realize that even the most self-confident person can doubt herself, and no one is saved from having insecurities. This can sound a bit mean, but to me, it is a relief. Daily, I see these girls with the "perfect" bodies and the "perfect" personalities, when in reality, we do not know what they are going through. In Spanish, we have a saying that says: "caras vemos, corazones no sabemos", which would translate into "faces we see, hearts we do not know."
On the other hand, I fell INSTANTLY for Ivan. I mean, the man was so damn perfect. I could not stop giggling when he said something "mean" to Jasmine. Ivan was my idol! OF COURSE, HE WILL BE ON MY BOOK BF LIST!!! Needless to say, the way he cares for Jas throughout the entire book it was too good to be true. I need to get an Ivan in my life ASAP.
Jas and Ivan's relationship developed over one year, making the slow burn and pining go through the roof! If slow burn had to be defined by a book it would be with this one. I really (really) liked that even though the romance was at the very end of the book, their friendship blossoms throughout the entirety of it; Jasmine and Ivan did not go straight to lovers since they took their time to know and trust each other to become friends. At some point, Ivan told Jasmine that being an ice skating partner meant having more trust than in a marriage because they had to trust each other every time they went out on the ice. Called me crazy, but this reminded me of when Aelin and Rowan became Carranam.
I have read some reviews where people said they did not like the book for this reason and because it was sold to them as a romance and smutty book. And yes, maybe I would have enjoyed more romance, but I would have preferred to see more about their competitions and how they did (I'm a bit of a competitive person, so, of course, I would have liked to see how they won!).
But I felt the opposite. I adore books where the main character has to learn to fight their inner demons, grow, and mature. If there is a romantic partner in between, that is a huge bonus point to me (I am a secret romantic girl). Hey, I am not saying I do not like reading romance or smutty books, just that understanding how these MCs overcome their mental blocks and insecurities inspires me to be better, make changes, and become the better version of myself. And that’s the funny thing, this book is too close to reality, which means we don’t sometimes get what we want. And honestly? I think it’s time we learn it is ok for things not to go as planned. We have to learn to flow more, or in this case slide across the ice more smoothly.
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