Pairing Off by Elizabeth Harmon

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With some time to mood read before the start of FaRoFeb, I was in the mood for contemporary. When I check out the 2nd board prompts for Winter's Kiss that would be harder to meet with fantasy romance. One of the prompts that stuck out to me was atypical sports romance. I knew immediately I wanted to pick up one of the figure skating romances I had on my kindle and chose Pairing Off by Elizabeth Harmon. This is the first in her Red Hot Russians series. I also used this to cover the prompt Chekov's Grandma for the Heaving Bosom's 2022 Reading Embrace.

Carrie is a pairs champion for the United States. At a the World Championships her partner is found sleeping with a judge. They both get stripped of their US championship and become outcasts in the figure skating world. Anton is a Russian figure skater and just lost his partner due to her switching for another top skater's final Olympics. When Anton has his coach reach out to Carrie, they become a new pair duo skating for Russia. As Carrie struggles with gaining dual citizenship and fighting against the scandal caused by her former partner, she becomes close with Anton in more than just a skating partner. Anton and Carrie had actually met while they were on the youth figure skating circuit and when they both realize their previous connection, it feels meant to be. Carrie is also still dealing with her mother's suicide and a strained relationship with her politician father and it makes it difficult for her to open up to Anton.

I loved this book. This was heavier than I expected, so there is triggers for suicide, death of a parent and a strained relationship/neglective parent. First off, the figure skating aspects of this were on point. I've read a couple figure skating romances before, but you could easily find terminologies used wrong. Since I am a figure skating fan, that always bothered me. I had none of that here and I kept thinking that Elizabeth might have been a figure skater herself since it all felt so real. I did see in her author's note or blurb at the end that she did compete as a youth in figure skating. Now I picked this up because it was blurbed as a Russian take of the movie Cutting Edge (which is one of my favorite figure skating movies). While it didn't really give me the same feeling as cutting edge, I still enjoyed it just as much.

I really just can't say enough good things about this book. It completely swept me away. If I were to get a bit nitpicky, it would have to be with Carrie. I did wish that Carrie opened up to Anton earlier. She would start, but then second guess her trust in him and clam up. I loved how patient Anton was with her though and it really made up for it. I also really liked that when it came to the 3rd act conflict, Anton and Carrie both trusted and believed in each other when kept apart. I just loved that it subverted what usually occurs and really ended the book so well.

I definitely want to read more of the series, although it does look the second book does get away from the figure skating setting. The hero is a figure skater though, so I'm still intrigued. I'm happy to find a another new contemporary author, especially since she has a figure skating sports romance series! We need more figure skating romances for sure. I can't wait to continue on and see what else in her backlist.

Have you read Pairing Off?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Pairing Off, Elizabeth Harmon, 5-stars, 1 day, eBook, 384 pages, published in 2015, small publisher