The Trailblazer by Gina Azzi

The Trailblazer, book seven of the Boston Hawks Hockey series, takes you on an emotional rollercoaster from the start. It’s second-chance love story with plenty of ups and downs and so much hope written into its lines.

When the story starts during her beloved grandfather’s will reading, we find Genevieve, or Vivi, is put in the awful position of get married before the following week or lose partial control over her family’s charitable Harrison Foundation and share the role with her money-minded cousin. She decides she can’t let that happen and gets her best friend to step up and fill the husband role. Declan, a professional hockey player for the Boston Hawks, finds out about Vivi’s wedding that will take place the next day and walks out of the arena before a game to drive the 17 hours to his hometown of Nashville in time for the wedding. When he gets there, we find out that Henry is backing out and in comes Declan to take over as Vivi’s husband. These two share a past that ended in unfortunate circumstances the summer before college, but that doesn’t mean that was the end of them together thanks to the forced (maybe “coerced by a will” is a better way to put it?) marriage. This book takes us through Declan and Vivi’s relationship starting with their unexpected marriage and all the while revisiting past hurts here and there.

These two were absolutely made for each other! I love that they have such a strong past connection that they reference. The notion of young love is so poetic in a way, and it’s portrayed as a backdrop for their present. It kind of drives home the idea of “meant to be,” and I was all about it. The storyline really had me feeling all warm and fuzzy, which is a plus for me. Also, even though it was so sad, I like that Azzi threw in such a heart-wrenching cause for the real demise of their relationship the first time around. It made their current journey that much more interesting and me that much more invested in their relationship.

Throughout the book, the thought of hopefulness resonates in every aspect of Declan and Vivi’s reconnection. For as much of a sad background that they have, the possibility of what could be and the optimism in their individual lives are the bright lights in this story. Their wedding as a catalyst for a new beginning in their lives is such a foundation for hope itself, and I couldn’t get over just how sweet and endearing it was.  

This slow-burn, second-chance romance had me from its first pages, and the dramatic ending was the perfect finish for this story. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!

**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review**

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