Though most cities don’t have two NHL teams NYC does, so it is feasible if it’s a (very) big city. Is the other team NHL as well? Many cities have lower-league pro hockey teams (like the AHL).

I read this book and couldn’t rest withouth passing a comment. I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Yes, Eric seems to be a too-good-to-be-true guy, yet even so, Emily can’t bring herself to trust him, because of her past. In a way, Emily is flawed, thus we can relate to her. Eric, too. He may not have apparent flaws, but he feels he has. He’s a wounded hero, and a fallen hero in his own eyes, but he’s in love with Emily and determined to prove himself. I adored him for that.

Romantically and technically Thin Ice is a keeper for me. I was, and remain, in awe of Ms Laverentz’s seamless POV switches and look forwad to her third novel, Ashton’s Secret, which is hopefully coming soon.

Many thanks for the opportunity to air my views.

Liana Laverentz
http://www.lianalaverentz.com

You’re right. It was a lot to handle in one book. Regarding the abuse issues in particular, I’d hoped to convey that abuse comes in many forms, (as well as spans all social and economic stratas), and hopefully the different characters who had experienced it showed different aspects of the issue.

I’m glad you liked Emily’s choice of profession. I made her an ER doctor for that very reason. She wants to help, wants to heal, but doesn’t want to get close to anyone or involved with her patients. In her own way, she’s a loner, too.

A lot of research did go into the book, especially regarding the NHL, which kept reorganizing on me, unruly thing, so I had to draw the line somewhere. (It’s too long-winded to go into here, but for more info on my research, readers can check out my interview at at Much Cheaper Than Therapy at http://muchcheaperthantherapy.blogspot.com/2008/03/interview-with-eppie-winner-liana.html)

I probably have enough information to fill another book with all I learned about hockey during my research, but I finally had to stop and say, listen, Liana, this is a romance, not a book about hockey, so what details pertain to the story and what will you have to leave out?

A lot, as it turned out (and some of my favorite research facts, too), but I hoped I kept it real enough to satisfy most readers, and not turn off the readers who were there for the romance and not the hockey. I didn’t really expect true hockey fans to be totally satisfied :) They would indeed know what I left out–and what I took literary license with :)

As for Eric being too good to be true…he was, and is. And I love him for it. All I did was set out to create my ideal hero. Thank you for calling him sweet, kind, loving and gentle.

In closing, I thank you for your kind comments regarding what you liked, and thanks most of all for calling Eric’s ex a gold-digging ho. I really enjoyed reading that :). (Glad to see someone else got her number, even if Eric didn’t until the end.) I appreciate your reading Thin Ice all the way to the end, despite your frustrations with it.

Happy Reading!

Liana Laverentz
Thin Ice (NJRW Golden Leaf and EPPIE Award Winner)
Jake’s Return
Available in e-book, print, and on Kindle
Ashton’s Secret (coming in 2008)
http://www.thewildrosepress.com
http://www.lianalaverentz.com
http://www.myspace.com/authorlianalaverentz