Review: Level Up by Cathy Yardley

Title: Level Up 
Author: Cathy Yardley
Publisher/Publication Date: Cathy Yardley, January 3, 2016
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Source/Format: Purchased (freebie), ebook

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Geeky introvert Tessa Rodriguez will do whatever it takes to get promoted to video game engineer– including create a fandom-based video game in just three weeks. The only problem is, she can't do it alone. Now, she needs to strong-arm, cajole, and otherwise socialize with her video game coworkers, especially her roommate, Adam, who’s always been strictly business with her. The more they work together, though, the closer they get…

Adam London has always thought of his roomie Tessa as “one of the guys” until he agreed to help her with this crazy project. Now, he’s thinking of her all the time… and certainly as something more than just a roommate! But his last girlfriend broke up with him to follow her ambitions, and he knows that Tessa is obsessed with getting ahead in the video game world.

Going from friends to something more is one hell of a challenge. Can Tessa and Adam level up their relationship to love?

My Thoughts:

I don’t typically read contemporary since sci-fi and fantasy novels are more my thing. However, when I do pick up a contemporary, then that means I’m specifically interested in the book in question. Level Up seemed like a good one, so, I went ahead and gave it a try. Going into this book, I was unfamiliar with Yardley’s novels. The shiny golden feature that drew me to Level Up was the synopsis. I like video games and I play them when I have the time, so, Level Up seemed like my kind of book.

And I was right.

The story follows Tessa Rodriguez, a self-proclaimed introvert who designs video games for a living—she was also looking to get promoted, and had a very career based mindset, which I found refreshing.

I really enjoyed reading about Tessa, and some of my favorite parts were seeing her find a comfortable environment with people who she could really talk to. It was the kind of friendship between female characters that I look for in books. And then there was Adam, Tessa’s roommate. He was sweet and caring despite the fact that he had his own share of problems to deal with. The other characters that were directly associated with Tessa and Adam were great too. And despite the short length of Level Up, these side characters were developed pretty well. They had differing personality, which added an extra layer of depth to the story.

My only real complaint was the length. It was too short. I wanted more! Still, the story was a good one and the ending was satisfying. All-in-all, Level Up was a quick and very fun read.

Rating 4/5