Blog Tour: Gold Rush

About the Book:
Title: Gold Rush
Author: Jennifer Comeaux
Publication date: January 9, 2017
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Rating: 4/5 stars

Synopsis: 

Liza Petrov’s entire life has been about skating and winning her sport’s top prize – Olympic gold. She’s stayed sheltered inside her bubble, not daring to stray from her destined path.
Until she meets Braden Patrick.
He makes her heart flutter with possibility, and for the first time she gets a taste of a normal teenage life. She longs to have both the boy and the gold, but stepping outside her bubble comes with a price. As Liza begins to question both her future and her past, can she stay focused on the present and realize her ultimate dream?

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Author Bio:

Jennifer Comeaux is a tax accountant by day, writer by night. There aren’t any ice rinks near her home in south Louisiana, but she’s a diehard figure skating fan and loves to write stories of romance set in the world of competitive skating. One of her favorite pastimes is traveling to competitions, where she can experience all the glitz and drama that inspire her writing. When she’s not writing, traveling, or calculating taxes, you can find her feeding her television addiction.

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Review:

This is the first book that I have read by Jennifer, and boy did she win me over! I've always had a thing for ice skating (it's always a definite much watch for me in the Olympics) so I was excited to pick up a novel dedicated entirely to ice skating with a dash of romance thrown in for good measure. I honestly was impressed by how much I enjoyed this story, and I am definitely checking out Jennifer's other books in the future!

Gold Rush is a nice, clean YA story that is fun and sweet all the way until the very end. There is so much to love about this book: the characters, the plot, the romance...I could go on and on. It's definitely a read that you will get lost in. I loved Jennifer's writing style. It was incredibly real and raw. In all the time that I've watched ice skating on TV, I never once thought about the mindset of the skater and what it actually takes to make it to the top. And Jennifer nailed it so perfectly in this novel! You feel all of Liza's anxiety, thoughts, and hopes throughout reading, and you're cheering for her during the entire book. I was with Liza through every high and every low; I was excited and heartbroken right along with her. I knew right after I started reading this book that I would fall in love purely because of the writing.

Liza is an amazing main character for this book. I didn't actually realize this was part of a series (and no, you don't need to read any of the other books in order to understand what's going on), but I'm definitely checking out the rest of the books now! I loved how dedicated Liza was to her goals. However, she also yearns to be that normal teenager that has the typical teenage experiences. Liza undergoes quite an amazing journey during this book, and I loved watching her become the person she is meant to be. She realizes that not only can she have the best of both worlds, but she deserves it. Liza deserves to be happy and Braden played a role in helping her become her best self. I loved seeing her character's development over the course of the story in that she becomes headstrong and more resilient. 

When Liza meets Braden sparks fly, and I loved every single second of their romance. I could gush about Braden for days because he is seriously perfect. Liza and Braden's relationship started as a friendship and grew from there, and because of this, it felt incredibly realistic. Even though they did have a bit of insta-love going on, they actually made the decision to start things off slow and be friends first (because it was what made the most sense). That right there is what made me love this book just a bit more. I appreciated an author doing this because it's more true to life. There are many trials Braden and Liza go through as well as hills they have to climb, but they get through things together and act like adults when things get rough. And the conclusion will make your heart flutter. 

Overall, this was an excellent book that I highly recommend checking out! It's a quick, clean YA story that has all the things you want in a romance story. I will most definitely be checking out Jennifer's other stories and she is an author to watch. The story will stick with you long after you finish, and it's the perfect Valentine's Day read!

Happy reading :)

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~Cassie