Dreams of Gold

Title: Dreams of Gold

Series: Dream's Edge #2

Author:Traci Hunter Abramson

Publisher: Covenant Communications

Genre: Contemporary Romance, Sports, Fiction

Source: Net Galley

My review:

Dreams of Gold is the second book in the series. I strongly recommend reading the first book, An Unlikely Pair, as this book picks up right where that one left off. 

 I absolutely loved An Unlikely Pair, it was one of my five-star reads for 2021, and I could not wait for this book to come out. Once it was up on Net Galley, I immediately requested it. Unfortunately, Dreams of Gold is a minor disappointment to me. Here's why: most of the things I loved about the first book are missing in the second book. I thought Amaliya and Tyler had a lot of depth in the first book. Yet, they don't progress much in the second book. We don't go deeper with them as characters, everything is on a superficial level. Second, in the first book they were SO positive. They did not focus on the negatives or let things get to them. In this book, it is the opposite. They are dealing with many things, and I get that, but they are constantly doubting their abilities and being negative. We get enough of that in real life, I don't want to read about it in my books. Especially since it is so out of character from the characters I loved in the first book.

So, what did I like? I liked that we see more of Gordon (the coach) and his family. We understand more about what he has been through and how he got to where he is. I enjoyed learning about Amaliya's heritage and what her mom's life was like growing up. I appreciated when Amaliya and Tyler got out of their heads and started acting more like the characters from the first book. There are some incredibly well-written scenes in this story, and I even got chills at one point. The ending was good, and it set the stage for the third book.

Overall, I am glad I read this book and plan to read the next one as well. I would recommend it to those who enjoy clean romance stories, and those who enjoy the Olympics.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book. I was not required to provide a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

★★★/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads): 

Nine months ago, Amaliya Marcell’s world was rocked when she nearly lost her parents in a devastating accident. In that moment, everything changed, and it was with no small amount of determination that the former ballerina rebuilt her life into something wonderful alongside the man she loves, her pairs ice-skating partner, Tyler.

Since he was a child, Tyler Linden has dreamed of Olympic gold. And with Amaliya by his side, he’s confident that his goal is finally within reach. The pair is on track to compete in the Winter Games in Leningrad, but the path to gold turns out to be rougher than they expected. A painful injury on the ice shakes Amaliya’s confidence, and it will take every ounce of willpower to keep working toward the competition of her life. But when the discovery of a family secret connects her to the Soviet Union, the truth of her history forges within Amaliya a renewed determination to make her Olympic dreams a reality.