The career of her dreams has become the life of her nightmares. Perfection is the goal and Tabitha is determined to deliver the goods, even if her heart is no longer in the sport. Shining Through is an up close and personal look at the drama behind the glamour of ice skating. There's grace, heat and romance. Ms. Harmon spotlights two characters working their way back, in an atmosphere that is as cold as the stage on which they perform. The excitement of competition has nothing on the sparks that heat up the connection between Daniil and Tabitha. ( )

As someone who can't stop on ice skates without using the boards (that's why they're there, surely?) I've always loved watching other people skating, whether it's competitive figure skating or hockey. (Those are the only two sports that compete at the winter Olympics, right?) So reading about figure skaters and hockey players? Totally right up my alley. So when I heard that there was a new Red Hot Russians book, my response was, "Yes, please!"

Shining Through was a solid addition to the series. Tabitha and Daniil are the couple who shouldn't work at all but somehow totally do. She's "America's Sweetheart" who's trying to finally bring home Olympic gold in her last competitive season, the girl whose family has made sacrifices for her to be able to skate her whole life. He's the son of a Russian oligarch who's rebelled against...well, pretty much everything...by being the bad boy of ice skating, so much so that his own country's program won't sponsor his career. They shouldn't work together, yet somehow they do. Until they almost don't...

I liked both Tabitha and Daniil--it was easy to root for them, both in their skating and in their relationship. Things were a tad bit rushed toward the end of the book, but as I was anxious for them to get to their HEA, I didn't mind too much. (Still--no actual page time for their Olympic routines was a bit of a bummer...)

Shining Through is the fifth book in the series, but could absolutely be read as a standalone--some of the other series characters make appearances, but it's not necessary to have read their stories (yet!) to enjoy this one.

Rating: 4 stars / B+

I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. ( )