Boyfriend Bargain by Ilsa Madden-Mills

 A Review by Wendy

5 Intoxicating Stars
* * * * *  

Spoiler Free 

Ok, so I had so many plans for this day off from work...Things to do, things I needed to do...and yet when I found out Ilsa Madden-Mills released the Boyfriend Bargain, my plans took a backseat. Yup, I went and clicked that baby and started it with feet up, day going into evening and was Sorry, Not Sorry one little bit.

You see, when something really clicks for me, I will dive right in... it could be my strength or weakness, the jury is out on that... but seriously, the love of a strong, engrossing read makes my day.

Sugar Ryan had a goal. Her mama told her she was good enough and to never let others dictate how she felt about herself. Sugar was raised by a single mother who made the mistake of falling in love with a man who was already taken, had too much money for his own good and never appreciated her like he should have. Sugar saw what that type of love for another could do to a person, and she was not going to let that happen to her. She lost her mother at age eleven and then was raised by her mom's best friend. She grew up strong, smart, scrappy and able to take care of herself. Smart as a whip, she was in her senior year at Hawthorne University with her goal close at hand...Vanderbilt Law School.

Sugar had a plan and she just needed to pull up her big girl panties and make it happen. Which is why she has been at every place Zack Morgan has been over the last few weeks.

Zack Morgan has always been in control. He rules the ice as the captain of the college hockey team. He already has been picked for the NHL and was so good, he convinced them to wait a year so he could bring his college teammates the championship they barely lost last year. Now he has all of this pressure on him, and his own personal stuff he has been able to close off and push down is rearing its ugly head causing him to lose that control he needs.

His problem isn't talent, he has that...
His problem isn't friends, everyone wants to be his...
And he certainly has no issues with the women, he can't keep them away...

But with this season being it for him, with all of this pressure...cracks are beginning to happen and his past mistakes he keeps locked down won't stay there, he needs some help.

When Sugar and Zack finally first talk, the electricity crackles and what Sugar planned to do goes out the window. Words didn't work and when actions took place instead...She took off, not accomplishing anything she had planned. When the dust settled, Sugar felt the need to contact Zack and just figure out another way to make her goal a reality without him.

But when Sugar finally explains why he had seen her everywhere, he has her tell him why. Her idea was smart, he thought...and he was so taken by Sugar that he decided then and there her concept of a fake relationship could work in his favor, too...after all, she could block all the jersey chasers freeing him to train and focus on the season. Plus Sugar was something special and being around her was a huge plus to for him

Stunned by the ease of Zack's agreement, Sugar makes sure while they are creating their rules... the main part of this boyfriend bargain was a strict No Falling In Love.

Well, boys and girls, this is the set up and foundation for this tale...but oh, there is more. Each of these characters have their own issues and they are part of who they are. Each has had to work to handle or overcome them and in may ways, these issues have made them stronger in their fight to conquer them.

There is much to appreciate... the intense feeling of first flirt, kiss and more with someone you are discovering for the first time. The intensity jumps off the page and it works because of the environment and ages of the characters. College seniors are so young...everything is intense. From the start of this book I felt it all. The good between Zack and Sugar, the ick of jealous girls,
bro-friendship of the players, and Sugar's friends and woman who raised her. All of it was there...

And so was the chemistry between Zack and Sugar...sexy times off the wall good...with equally sweet and endearing moments with the way these two were real with each other.

I spent the day with a silly grin on my face while reading most of this. I then face palmed, cared, was concerned, wanted to shake some sense into both and was then settled. Many a time I had to remember, YOUNG PEOPLE...

This Sunday did not go as planned...and am I sorry... So Not Sorry as I was able to kick back, be in the moment and be taken away. Now I want more from Ilsa Madden-Mills. I want the other characters stories, so get right on that please....

Ilsa Madden-Mills

Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and USA Today best-selling author Ilsa Madden-Mills is best known for her angsty and sexy new adult romances.
A former high school English teacher, she adores all things Pride and Prejudice, and of course, Mr. Darcy is her ultimate hero.
She's addicted to frothy coffee beverages, cheesy magnets, and any book featuring unicorns and sword-wielding females.