The Score

Romance

Print length: 354 pagesCreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016

Description

Allie Hayes is approaching college graduation with no clear plan for what comes next and a fresh breakup from the long relationship that shaped her adult life. A rebound night with hockey star Dean Di Laurentis is supposed to be a temporary escape. Dean, a celebrated womanizer accustomed to effortless conquests, is startled when Allie refuses to become another admirer and asks for friendship instead. He begins pursuing her just as she tries to protect her uncertain future from further complication. Their physical chemistry develops into a test of whether either can move beyond familiar roles, especially when major changes force Dean to reconsider his carefree habits. This college sports romance balances sexual candor with questions about ambition, grief, commitment, and growing up.

Reading profile

About this profile

Collected’s assessment, not reader ratings. Complexity runs from 1 (least demanding) to 5 (most demanding).

Writing: How much attention the sentences and language require.
Ideas: How much interpretation or abstract reasoning the book asks of you.
Structure: How much you need to keep track of speakers, timelines and connections.
Background knowledge: Prior knowledge needed to follow the book, beyond what it explains.
Emotional intensity: Emotional pressure, from gentle (1) to intense (5). Separate from difficulty.

Writing style

Conversational · Dialogue-driven · Witty

Pace

Brisk

Tone

Humorous · Intimate · Romantic · Warm

Structure

Linear

Focus

Character · Relationships

Emotional intensity

4 / 5

Reading complexity

1–5 · higher means more demanding

Writing: 1 / 5
Ideas: 2 / 5
Structure: 2 / 5
Background knowledge: 1 / 5

Themes

AmbitionComing of ageFriendshipGriefLoveTransformation

About Elle Kennedy

Elle Kennedy is a Canadian novelist whose work spans contemporary romance and romantic suspense, with much of her romance fiction set in the competitive, socially enclosed world of college hockey. Her novels typically begin with a practical arrangement or impulsive encounter, then let attraction complicate the terms. Direct, conversational prose and quick, dialogue-led scenes keep the courtship moving, while sharp banter gives way to candid negotiations over sex, trust, and responsibility. The Deal turns tutoring and a fake date into a friendship that unsettles both participants’ plans. Similar structures recur without producing identical conflicts. In The Goal, unexpected parenthood brings ambition, money, and independence into the relationship, while Risk uses rival teams, professional aspirations, and a staged romance to put private desire under public pressure. Kennedy often reverses an initial imbalance by making confidence prove itself through patience and accountability. Her linked casts also allow couples’ choices to register beyond a single courtship, as campus routines yield to work, family, and adult obligations.