Unsportsmanlike Conduct by Sophia Henry brings us the story of an unlikely romance found aboard a cruise ship in the Caribbean. Kristen’s parents send her on a Greek singles cruise after graduation in hopes of her coming home in love with a good Greek man. When she meets Pasha, not Greek but definitely the hottest guy she’s ever seen and someone who sparks intrigue within her, she can’t help but start to fall for him. The perfect setting, his hot body, and his bad-boy demeanor yet soft side sparks Kristen’s interest – and her heart. But what she doesn’t realize is that Pasha is hiding a different side of him.
Told in dual POV, I thought it was fantastic that we also got Pasha’s side of the story, and I think it was really needed to bring both characters to life. Pasha is hiding that he actually knows of Kristen – or KK as her best friend calls her – because as a hockey player, he is good friends with her best friend’s fiancé, also a hockey player. But the past with them is rocky, and Pasha knows that if Kristen knows who he really is, she would never give him a chance. So he tries to give Kristen the best week of her life, knowing it will all have to end after the cruise.
There are a lot of interesting plot points in Unsportsmanlike Conduct, one being Kristen’s condition with Cystic Fibrosis. I learned a lot about the disease from this read, and it was wonderful to see how Pasha – or Pavel, his real name – cares for Kristen in spite of a life-threatening condition, and how he wants to help her live every day to the fullest. The romance on the cruise ship is definitely hot and steamy. Once they are off the ship and back to real life, it turned a little predictable, as most romance reads do. But I was still curious to get to the ending and it kept me invested. I could tell this book was a part of a series, but I never felt like I was confused or had missed something, it just made me want to read the other books because I really enjoyed the writing style from Sophia Henry. If you are a fan of romance, this is definitely one to check out!
4 stars
Reviewed for Readers Favorite
