Proceed With Caution:
This book contains a sexual assault and mentions of terrorists.
The Basics:
Gaming for Keeps is the first novella in this series about secret agents! This one is narrated by Cal, a codebreaker for the FBI, and Pen, a normal girl. Both of them play the MMORPG called Heroes of Fallen Gods, which is kind of how they meet.
My Thoughts:
Gaming For Keeps is a geeky, but exciting, Romantic Suspense set at a gamer convention! Pen and Cal both play Heroes of Fallen Gods in supporting guilds. The two flirt in game, but have never met in real life. Of course, both of them are going to the upcoming ConDamned. Cal has an assignment there to hack his way into a terrorist plot, which is his first priority, but he’d also love to finally meet “Megara.”
What I liked most about Gaming For Keeps is that it’s fast paced without skipping over the good stuff. There’s the overarching terrorist plot that’s to take place at the convention, which Cal has to help stop. There’s the romance between Cal and Pen, obviously, complete with mistaken identities! And there’s the game and the convention, which get a decent amount of page time to make them feel like real parts of the world rather than just plot devices. It’s all very well balanced and enjoyable.
My only complaint was that during the inevitable misunderstanding scene, Pen basically says that coding is only for ugly chicks. She sees Cal with a beautiful woman when he says that he’s working and jumps to the conclusion that they’re seeing each other because no woman who looks like that can work in coding. Right. I know there had to be something to come between them briefly, but that was just rude.
In the end, I really enjoyed Gaming For Keeps. It was geeky, steamy, and fun!