The Dare Paperback – Big Book, 6 July 2022

My least favourite of the Briar U but still a great read. I feel like this could have been a spin-off standalone as there wasn’t much hockey in it and the themes were a little darker than the others.And as much as I enjoyed it, I would have preferred Hollis’ story over Conor’s.

*By the way, once again when I received this book, and started reading, majority of the pages fell out, and weren’t properly binded. This has been happening way too many times when I order books from Amazon and then I request a new copy that isn’t damaged. Very upsetting.Another Briar U story read and completed and now I’m feeling like I just said goodbye to some good friends. Obviously I plan on re-reading all the books as much as possible whenever I get the chance, but it’s always bittersweet when you finish a book, or series of books you’ve come to love and appreciate it. That being said let’s dive into my after thoughts on “The Dare”, Connor and Taylor’s story.Before reading this book, Connor was portrayed as the chill, laid back, womanizer who could make a woman weak in the knees with just his smile. In “The Dare”, Connor’s background revealed that he wasn’t all “happy and laid back” as everyone thought. Connor definitely had a chip in his shoulder, especially growing up, and that kind of mentality has always stuck with him, therefore becoming a deep seated insecurity of his. I always appreciate the character growth in this series because, it shows the improvements and steps they’ve taken ( whether it was intentional or not) for the betterment of their well-being.Taylor also had her own insecurities that she dealt with throughout the story, and it’s one that I feel like Elle Kennedy did intentionally. For us women, the topic of our bodies and trying to attain the “perfect body” has been a reoccurring thing because, we’re all told different things and sometimes no matter what we’re our biggest critics. My heart went out to Taylor because, she felt the need to calorie count her food, and eat certain foods in order to lose weight so she could reach her ideal weight. Taylor was a beautiful character and even when Connor would constantly tell her how beautiful she was, Taylor didn’t believe him because, she thought it wasn’t sincere ( in the beginning). As the story progressed, Taylor got a little better with her confidence, and while I’m sure all her insecurities didn’t magically disappear, she started making strides in accepting herself.One thing I loved about this book was seeing all Breanna, Summer, Demi, and Taylor hanging out. This story showed a tiny bit of all the girls together, and the start of a lovely friendship. Also loved how the girls accepted Taylor wholeheartedly. This story had its fair share of funny moments from a certain dinner that happened in the middle of the book ( no spoilers), to Connor being an absolute goofball, and the guys making jokes to one another. At times, the story did dive a bit into some slightly dark stuff in terms of Connor having to deal with his past with his old childhood friend, to Taylor dealing with certain individuals taking it upon themselves to post things about her ( you’ll know when you read the book). Other than that, this book was fairly good, not exactly my favorite in the Briar U series, but nonetheless I appreciated the characters.Bittersweet ending to this beloved series, but the good thing is if I ever miss these crazy hockey players and amazing women I could always dive right back in and enjoy the fun all over again.

Love this book

I order this for a gift and she likes it

Amazing book and phenomenal series!!!