When Lindsey Green joined the online role-playing game Keys to Myths, she didn’t know how drastically it would change her life.  Four months ago Lindsey began privately chatting with one of the other players, Sandulf.  Now, at a gamer convention in Las Vegas, Lindsey is about to meet her cyber lover in the flesh.  Preparing herself for the worst, Lindsey is shocked to discover that Sandulf is all she’s ever dreamed of and more.

Abram Rios has been looking forward to taking his play with Lindsey from the internet to real life.  The curvy librarian is everything he ever wanted and Abram can’t keep his hands off her.  Soon fantasy becomes reality and online flirtation leads to love.  But will Lindsey and Abram’s newfound love be quashed under the weight of others’ prejudices before it ever has a chance to grow?

With the number of differing online communities growing exponentially every day, it’s a tempting dream that something you join for fun could lead to finding the love of your life.  Melissa Lopez takes this idea, gives it her own unique twist, and brings it to life in Gamer Love.

I thought this story was wonderful.  Lindsey and Abram are such likeable characters it’s impossible not to get caught up in Gamer Love, watching their romance unfold and hoping they are able to get their happily ever after.  The prejudices which threaten to tear them apart are tragic, but sadly plausible, grounding what would otherwise be a light-hearted fantasy in reality.  I admire Ms. Lopez for not making the decisions the characters have to make easy, it not only makes the story feel a bit more real, it gives me greater respect for the characters for having to overcome the obstacles in their path.

Though I love the depth Ms. Lopez gives the story, most of Gamer Love focuses on Lindsey and Abram’s romance, which is what makes the story fun, if one can use such a bland term for searingly passionate love scenes.  Ms. Lopez cranks up the heat and combines it with moments of unexpected tenderness, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Gamer Love is an utterly delicious fantasy played out on the page and I found it to be irresistible.  From start to finish, it had my undivided attention and made me incredibly eager to read more of Ms. Lopez’s work.