Book Review of Shredded by Tracy Wolff

In this intense and exhilarating New Adult series debut, a hotshot snowboarder and a vulnerable rebel with a cause try to let go of the past—and find a future in each other.

Twenty-one-year-old professional snowboarder Z Michaels is the bad boy of Park City, Utah. He’s always had his pick of any girl in town—and on the competition circuit. But underneath his cool exterior is a young man in turmoil, trying to take the edge off tragedy by overindulging in sex and shredding the slopes. In fact, Z’s reckless behavior is a thinly veiled attempt to blunt his emotional suffering with physical pain.
Ophelia Richardson isn’t like any girl Z has ever met. Though she’s from New Orleans high society, she’s no Southern belle—and she’s not shy about being miserable in frozen, godforsaken Park City. But laying low is her only option after her ex, a rich boy who couldn’t take no for an answer, nearly killed her in a jealous rage. Following that terrifying encounter, the last thing Ophelia needs is a boyfriend—especially one as rich and arrogant as Z. But Ophelia soon discovers that he isn’t what he seems. If anything, Z may be even more damaged than she is.
Tormented by their pasts and feeling alone in the world, Z and Ophelia find a connection unlike any they’ve ever known. But with Ophelia hiding the details of her life in Louisiana and Z’s death wish reaching terrifying new heights, their relationship seems to be going downhill before it even begins—unless they can find the strength in each other to trust, grow, and love again.

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I was drawn to this book the moment I saw that super sexy cover!  It's a superficial reason, but I can't help myself!  I just wish that what was between the pages was as distinctive as the cover.  Ultimately, this wasn't a bad read, just nothing that set itself apart from other NA reads.

Set in the exhilarating world of snowboarding, Ms. Wolff vividly depicts the action-packed and carefree way of life for these athletes and the on the edge tricks they do.  Into this exciting group of adrenaline junkies comes the playboy Z with a past full of heartbreak.  He's been running from his past and drowning his misery in meaningless sex, dangerous tricks, and purposely failing.  His demeanor has made him the King of the slopes but not the kind of man for commitment, which was okay with him until he met Ophelia.  She hates him from the get-go but their connection almost too quickly evolves into a surprisingly emotional relationship full of sexual tension.  Z is the sexy yet stereotypical bad boy you can't help but be drawn to no matter what he does and while I enjoyed him I never really felt we got to know him too deeply, nor did I find his relationship with Ophelia compelling.  I was drawn to his body but never felt we got too far into his mind.  Ultimately I was more intrigued by the secondary characters and the brief glimpses we got of them, though I still enjoyed Z much more than Ophelia.

Ophelia too is running from tragedy, hiding from the pain of her past, and has sworn off adrenaline junkies.  While an early meeting with Z ends with coffee down his pants, their relationship takes off from there.  By running from her past we're left with a character I never felt I got to know too deeply which made the connection to Z less meaningful than what I like in my romances.  She was definitely the least colorful of all the characters and left me feeling disappointed in her presentation.

Ultimately, I applaud Ms. Wolff on her unique setting and vividly depicted sports world and its (at times) too much snowboarding terminology.  The story too was a bit slow at first as Z was on his path of self-destruction with momentum that didn't pick up until half-way through.  While the insta-love felt a bit superficial this time around, I was still rooting for Z and Ophelia to work through their pain and reach their HEA in a conclusion that ends with a cliffhanger for other characters.  This was a good start to what promises to be a satisfying series and I look forward to the next installment in the Extreme Risk series.

My rating for this is a C+

*I got this book from NetGalley for review in exchange for my honest opinion.