If he could control his temper, Patrick "Patch" Donnelly would be one of the best goalies in the NHL. When he gets sued for an altercation that happened a few months ago, Patrick knows he's in big trouble. His coach demands that he attends a yoga class, which is not precisely to Patrick's taste, but he can't refuse. When Margot Kowalski's friend Breezy tells her that she has enrolled Patch in one of her classes, Margot is not sure how to take it. Sure, it could make her reputation, and she could open her dream business, but she doesn't have high hopes about taming the ginger's hot temper. Good thing Margot doesn't do redheads anymore, because her new client looks very tempting ...

Truth be told, I'm not crazy about hockey romances, but I could not resist VIRGIN TERRITORY's premise: a virgin male hero and an experienced slightly older woman! I prayed that it would live up to my expectations. How could I have missed this series, how could I have not read Lia Riley! Unforgivable of me! I loved the author's voice from the first paragraphs: so descriptive and dynamic, add witty, snappy, snazzy dialogues, and characters that pop right off the page. All this, dear readers, done in a spectacularly realistic manner! While it was obvious VIRGIN TERRITORY was not the first book in the series, I didn't get the impression that I was missing anything, although I will want to read the previous installments because Tor and Neve are fabulous.

I loved the friendship between Margot, Neve, and Breezy, as much as the one between Patch and Sully -- his school chum. While the book was light on hockey, there was enough to convey the type of environment and camaraderie where the story took place. I loved that first time when Patrick and Margot met; it was unusual, fun, and just a tad unsettling. It gave a solid impression of what Patch was all about, and gave the explosive chemistry between Patrick and Margot the necessary spark to ignite. The insta-lust was absolutely believable, and if love bloomed rather quickly, if Patch's anger issues were dealt with rather expeditiously, and when Patch morphed from virgin to instant super talented sex god, I didn't mind one bit. And this is why: sometimes we don't always need all those details when all the rest works admirably, the characters draw you in, and you feel connected to them. The positive outweighs the negative by a ton, or two. I'd rather be blown away by the blooming romance than bored with superfluous trifle or manufactured conflicts. Also, I greatly appreciated the author's strong stance against slut-shaming and virgin-bashing. Her observations on how those beloved alpha males of romance novels can turn into the controlling bullies that non-fictional women encounter were humongous pluses in my book.

Both Patch and Margot have very compelling backstories; Patch's is unusual and everything made sense. I loved how they acted towards each other; the story did not unfold exactly how I thought it would, and it was magical. VIRGIN TERRITORY was, so far, my discovery of the year. I am looking forward to reading more of Lia Riley. I fell in love with her voice, the breeziness of the pace, the magnificently drawn characters; I loved it all!

Book Summary

Practice Makes Perfect

Patrick “Patch” Donnelly has what it takes to be the best goalie in the NHL…if only he could learn to control his temper. When Coach orders him to get his head in the game with private yoga classes, Patch isn’t having it. There’s no way this tough Boston guy would be caught dead downward dog-ing his way to inner peace. But if he refuses, he risks his starting position and the dream he sacrificed everything for, including joining the priesthood.

Yoga instructor Margot Kowalski is over men. After yet another toxic relationship, she’s eager to forget love and focus on growing her business. Doing the Hellions head coach a favor by helping out a troubled player can't hurt, and it might give her career a high-profile boost. But free-spirited Margot is soon charming the pants off Patch. Literally. Her sassy combination of sweet and sexy proves irresistible to the goalie. Before Patch can give into temptation though, he’ll have to confess his biggest secret:

He’s a virgin.

But Patch is hiding more than sexual inexperience, and his dark past soon threatens to destroy his shot at true love.