Short Take Reviews: Coen and Drake by Sawyer Bennett

 

COEN

Sawyer Bennett

Series: Pittsburgh Titans #4

Format: Kindle

Source: Purchased

When the Pittsburgh Titans plane went down, Coen Highsmith was one of the lucky ones – one of the three hockey players who were not on the plane with their team. Coen was riddled with survivor’s guilt and, instead of dealing with it, took out his anger and frustration on everyone around him: his teammates, his coaches, management, right on up to the team’s owner. Now off for the summer, he has no intention of returning to his team when the new season starts. He is walking away from his hockey career. Staying in a secluded cabin in the woods, he is immediately at odds with his closest neighbor, artist Tillie Marshall. Threatening a lawsuit when she attempted to cut down some trees, Coen continued to butt heads with Tillie even as attraction flared between them. 

While I enjoyed Coen’s story and appreciated his journey from anger and grief to acceptance and healing, I missed some of the trademark elements that I’ve loved in the previous books in the series. There was little time spent with the team and I sorely missed that camaraderie. I also missed the slow evolution of the romantic relationships from the previous books. Coen was a real jerk to Tillie, and he continued to be for longer than I would have liked. They didn’t exactly have a friends with benefits relationship because they weren’t really friends. There was an intense attraction that they agreed to act on. Even though a friendship of sorts did form, I never really felt a true romance develop, and their relationship did not have the emotional depth that I experienced with the other couples. While this wasn’t my favorite in the series, I still enjoyed Coen’s story, and the moments I did get with the team were truly special and heartwarming. 4 stars

DRAKE

Sawyer Bennett

Series: Pittsburgh Titans #5

Format: Audiobook

Source: Purchased

Drake McGinn felt betrayed and abandoned by the league when his (now ex) wife made false allegations against him – and his team, the media, and the fans chose to believe her. Although proven to be false, the damage was done, and he chose to walk away and leave it behind. His sole focus became being a single father to his three sons. When Brienne Norcross, new owner of the Pittsburgh Titans, showed up at his home and offered him a spot on the rebuilt team, he was still bitter, but accepted. Now he has to find a balance between hockey, his boys, and the intense chemistry between he and Brienne. 

After feeling like the previous book (Coen) was lacking some of the elements I've come to appreciate in this series, I was relieved this latest entry returned to what I’ve loved and come to expect: slowly evolving relationships with deep emotional connections, and a focus on the strong bonds between the teammates. Both Drake and Brielle were insistent that they did not want a relationship, and that made their journey all the more satisfying.  I loved how they truly saw one another and accepted the other for who they were. I was delighted with how their relationship slowly morphed into something more and how tentative they were to explore those possibilities. The female friendships, Drake’s devotion to his boys, Brielle’s kindness and her acceptance of Drake’s priorities, and the way Drake celebrated Brielle’s strength and success while also helping her to find balance in her life… it all combined in such a satisfying way. A bonus was seeing the relationships from previous books continue to flourish, and the surprise wedding proposal (I’m not telling whose!) about made my heart burst. I’ll be so sorry to see this series come to an end. 4.25 stars

Have you read either of these books?