A review by bribreez
Ruled Out by Ruth Stilling

emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

*Thank you so much to Word Smith Publicity and Ruth Stilling for providing me with an ARC to this story. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

4.75⭐️/ 5🌶️

I’M JUST A GIRL WHO LOVES HOCKEY ROMANCES AND RUTH STILLING! I CAN’T BE STOPPED! Ruth Stilling has once again stolen my heart with the type of fictional characters she writes that I forever wish were real people! Before this book, Jessie was always someone that didn’t really catch my attention, but oh boy he sure did in this book! Finally, the time came for Jessie’s story and his second chance romance with Mia…a.k.a. his former GM’s daughter and therefore FORBIDDEN ROMANCE! Mia and Jessie’s story was one that had an emotional backstory that I really honed in on while reading, and also, if the story has something to do with the “broken boy” type slash some angst and heartache, you already know I’m going to be equally loving it whilst I’m an emotional, sensitive mess. Ruth Stilling still brought the deep, loving group of friends from the previous stories while also introducing new characters such as, Mia to round out the found family. If you’ve read Ruth’s previous books in this series, then this is your sign to READ THIS BOOK AS WELL! 

No matter what, even with the years between them being apart, Jessie and Mia were always meant to be. The thing I liked that was included in this story was the little flashbacks of when Mia and Jessie were first together. Even in the past, it was obvious that there was such a strong connection between Mia and Jessie, and fast forward to the past, those feelings never went away. Also, kind of an ironic thing, but it’s funny how Jessie and Mia “tried” to keep things platonic and at a distance, but LETS BE REAL THOSE TWO WERE ALWAYS GOING TO BE REUNITED ONE WAY OR ANOTHER! Jessie was the man with both internal and external problems that he kept hidden, but Mia knew him better than anyone else, and was able to pick up on his behavior unlike anyone else. Mia was someone trying to find her footing in the world while going to school and working, and to be reunited with Jessie was endearing because, it was like they picked up where they left off. 

(Sigh) poor Jessie dealt with a lot, and his journey over the course of this story illustrated the highs and lows of his life. From a young age, Jessie didn’t have the stable and loving family environment that most kids had. Instead, Jessie grew up in a household with parents or more specifically a parent that treated him horribly. Without giving too much away, just know that Jessie’s story had some heavy topics involved so, please check the trigger/ content warnings before reading. There was often times that I just wanted to hug and protect Jessie! My poor, sweet, beautiful Jessie (sigh) his story made me sad. 

Mia was an endearing and lovely person who I found myself relating to. Now, obviously not everything that happens to a character or in a book will be something that I can personally relate to, but something about Mia’s personality and aspects of her, I found myself both admiring her and also understanding her on some level. Mia was a sweet and kind person, she had previously worked with her father on his NHL team, but that wasn’t the career path for her. Instead, Mia sought out to go to school and get the necessary skills and knowledge needed for her future career. I found it interesting how Mia’s major actually played well into her personality since she was so intuitive and understanding of others especially with Jessie. Jessie was use to keeping things guarded, but with Mia knowing him so well, she was often always able to see behind the cracks in his wall of things he kept hidden. Mia’s journey over the course of this story was good as well since she took the initiative and went after what she wanted, and was reunited with her first and only love, Jessie!

This series has officially come to an end *tear, tear. Over the course of this series, I have been introduced to unique characters that I’ve really enjoyed reading about as well as loving them. Jessie and Mia’s story was one that saw them finding that second chance to be together, and get their happily ever after they always deserved. Jessie was a sweet man at his core who always loved Mia, and little by little diminished his walls to reveal the vulnerabilities he kept hidden. As much as I love to see a man be all protective over the woman he loves, it’s an entirely different experience to see a big, strong man break down in tears, and open himself up about his fears, and vulnerable side. Jessie had a horrible childhood and it followed well into his adulthood, but eventually he found himself at a place where he was ready to seek help for his trauma. Mia also found herself back in Jessie’s arms where she always belonged, and found equally loving, kind friends with Kate, Luna, Felicity, Jon, Zack, and Jensen. While this story was bittersweet to and, it was heartfelt to see the epilogue end the way that it did with the entire group together, as well as setting it up nicely for Ruth’s next series with someone who had more face time in this specific book. Bravo, Ruth, you did an amazing job bringing Jessie and Mia’s story together. (Sigh) I really enjoyed this book, and I cannot stress how much you should read this book and every book in this series! Highly recommend! 
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