Book Review: Wicked Serve by Grace Reilly

If there's one thing I can trust Grace Reilly to do, it's writing an incredible sports romance and she did not disappoint with Wicked Serve.

Even though I only recently started reading Reilly this year, I've come to love and adore her Beyond the Play series. That's a post for another day as we're here to talk about the series finale which is Wicked Serve.

Thus far in the series, we've watched all of the Callahan siblings get their HEA aside from Izzy but now is finally her time to shine and I mean that in more ways than one. While I won't say that she left the best for last, Izzy is a character a lot of us love and have been wanting her romance.

While this book was released in August, I just recently got the time to read it and I have so many thoughts on this unlikely romance for our favorite little sister: Izzy Callahan. I'd like to thank Avon for sending me an ARC of Wicked Serve.

Wicked Serve is an incredible end to the Beyond the Play series.

In a way, this feels like deja vu as I specifically remember, talking about how First Down was a great series starter and Wicked Serve nailed the ending. While we got hints of Izzy's romance at the end of Stealing Home, we finally were able to find out just what Izzy was up to over the summer.

The book is set in the present with Izzy now back at school but thinking about the amazing time she had with Nikolai who is not only her brother's hockey rival but her boss's son. The two start hooking up over the summer and don't imagine they'll run into each other again. Of course, Nikolai ends up taking the fall for one of the players at his school and is forced to transfer to McKee University.

While Izzy is trying to get her mind off of him, the two run into each other and it's clear the chemistry is still there. As much as they try to avoid it, they're like moths to a flame. The two can't manage to stay away from each other. Of course, there is some complications as Nikolai is her brother's teammate and they're sneaking around which eventually comes back to bite them.

Aside from just how sexy and fun these two are, Wicked Serve doesn't just rely on romance. Izzy is trying to get a better volleyball position and help plan her brother's upcoming wedding. She's dealing with so much along with keeping that secret from her brother. Nikolai is dealing with pressure from his grandfather, his father, and some past childhood trauma. Honestly, this book isn't all sunshine and rainbows, but that's what makes this book so good.

Every book in the Beyond the Play series offers something different than what you'd expect from the cover. That's the beauty of romance books, though. While it's going to be hard to pick a favorite from this series, Wicked Serve was an amazing conclusion and it tied that invisible string, weaving the entire series together.

While you can read the series in whatever order you'd like, it's best to start with First Down and then move through the rest of the series. In Wicked Serve, all the couples from the previous books are featured and it's such a full-circle moment. If you're craving some new-adult sports romance, then Wicked Serve is the perfect romance to help you transition into fall.

Wicked Serve by Grace Reilly is out now in paperback, ebook, and audio. You can also find it on Kindle Unlimited.