Playing To Win

In Playing To Win (Summer Beach Vets #2) by H. Y. Hanna, Ellie has uprooted herself from America to accept a dream job in Australia. A perfectionist and career driven, Ellie does not tolerate mistakes. Nor does she ever just relax and have fun. When an encounter with a playful dog who will eat anything, his owner, and then the vet, Ellie's life is about to change.

Dan, the vet, is fun and easy going. He's also quite charmed by Ellie...even if he does find her a bit uptight. Both of them are attracted, but Ellie is all about her career with no time for anything else. Soon though she is spending more and more time with Dan, as well as the dog and his owner, a young boy named Will. Dan shows Ellie a funner, more laid back side to life. That no one is perfect, and mistakes are a normal part of life. Ellie's not sure what her future holds, and she has a hard time letting go of her perfectionist ways...can she open her heart to Dan or will her career still be the most important thing in her life?

Playing To Win is a fast paced, entertaining story that will make you laugh while you hope Ellie would just relax a little! I found Ellie hard to connect with, but the story is written so well that H. Y. Hanna still drew me in and made me want to know how things would end up. I really liked Dan...his life was by no means perfect, but he was realistic, enjoying life, and hoping to have Ellie in his life.

I love the setting and the ocean in Playing To Win, H.Y.. Hanna's descriptiveness was well written, making Summer Beach a place I'd love to visit.

There are two main secondary characters, young Will and his dog Milo who managed to pull at my heart! There are some other secondary characters more on the periphery who I believe were part of the first Summer Beach Vets book. Having read only this book in the series, Playing To Win can easily be read as a stand alone.

Witty with enough of a serious side to be real, I'd recommend Playing To Win to any romance reader looking for a quick escape!

3.5/5 stars