The Rules of the Game by J. Wilder Book Review
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Wondering if you should add The Rules of the Game by J. WIlder to your TBR? You’re in the right place!
I read this romance book through Kindle Unlimited. I’m excited to share my thoughts about J. WIlder’s The Rules of the Game with you!
The Rules of the Game is the second romance book of J. Wilder’s Rule Breakers series.
He’s the star hockey player, my brother’s best friend and the boy I’ve been in love with since I was 7.
The problem? He wants nothing to do with me.
Then why does he sneak into my room when I have a nightmare?
Gets jealous when I go on a date?
And has a tattoo of my birthday on his ribs.
Lucas Knight’s a lot of things. He’s possessive, jealous and overprotective. And he just might be in love with me.
Angst filled, heartbreaking and kick your feet in the air giddy inducing.
Summary: The Rules of the Game by J. Wilder
Piper has been head over bike handles for Lucas since she first met him when she was seven years old. Even though he was her first friend, Lucas became her brother’s BFF, who was nothing but overly protective of Piper and warned all boys to stay away.
Fast forward to the summer before college, and Piper’s dreams seemingly come true—Lucas finally notices her and they get together!
But tragedy strikes and Lucas does a one-eighty leaving Piper behind to nurse a shattered heart.
A year later, Piper has worked hard on herself to forget Lucas and heal her heart from so much brokenness.
When she sees Lucas again for the first time, her heart forgets what her brain told her: to give him the cold shoulder.
Lucas on the other hand is cold as the ice he skates on and continues to avoid her at all costs.
My Thoughts: The Rules of the Game by J. Wilder
I was drawn into this romance book from the beginning when Piper first meets Lucas. Her family just moved into the house next door and she wanted to make a friend.
You get insight into how Piper is more reserved while her brother Marcus loves the spotlight, thus successfully drawing Lucas away.
So much angst starts towards the beginning of the story and continues to build and build and build.
Piper doesn’t know why Lucas left her even after he’s told her a million times that “he’s got her.” And Lucas completely removes himself from her life, instead focusing all his attention on hockey.
Even after they meet again a year later, the mutual pining is strong. I’m torn between finding Piper’s pining endearingly sweet and slightly wanting to nudge her to embrace life beyond her Lucas-lined tunnel vision.
She tries to go out on dates but watches Lucas’ games instead. She dances with other (hot) guys, but can’t keep her eyes away from Lucas. Even in her internal monologue, Piper is always thinking about how Lucas keeps her safe.
Lucas. We get a silent treatment that lasts an eternity and he pretty much blocks everyone out. When he sees Piper again, he tries hard to stay away, but he can’t seem to tear his eyes (or thoughts) away from Piper either.
He does overly sweet things for her like driving an hour both ways to get her favorite dinner, carrying her out of a burning building, baking her muffins late at night knowing he won’t eat them, and brooding anytime she looks at another guy. 🫠
There’s so much angst and pining and frustration for these 2 characters… enough to have you clutching your e-reader wondering when the dam will finally break.
This story is full of tropes. If college sports romance is your jam, and you’ve got a thing for protective, flawed MMC within a realm of new-adult angst, this book might just be your jam!
All in all, I thought Lucas and Piper’s confrontation could have been fleshed out more so we could get a deep emotional tug, especially since there was so much angst.
Final Thoughts: Rules of the Game by J. Wilder
Even though The Rules of the Game is 3 stars for me, the spice level in this romance book? Hawt! Let’s just say Lucas takes care of his girl.
This story also has:
And before I forget, if you’re invested in the Rule Breaker Series, you’ll want to stick around for more.
J. Wilder already has Jax’s story out in book #1 Rule Number Five. In this book, we get a preview of Alex and River’s story, which is an MMF romance story. 🥵
Happy reading, and be prepared for the slow burn – it’s going to be a bumpy skate! 🏒💔
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