Blog Tour: The Other Brother By: Meghan Quinn

Hey ya'll!! I am so excited to be a part of the THE OTHER BROTHER blog tour today.

I want to send a huge thank you to Meghan and the amazing team over at Wordsmith Publicity for getting this pretty sent out for review. Ya'll are amazing 😘😘

I absolutely freaking loved this book! It was so cute and sweet. And had such a good balance of things, plus amazing characters too.

And ya'll! I got the opportunity to meet Meghan a few weeks ago at Shameless17

And she was so sweet and kind. I had an absolute blast getting to talk with her 😍😍😍

I got the call. The dreaded call every child fears. My dad wasn’t well, and the man who had always been my everything needed me. 

There was only one thing to do; pack up and head back to my hometown. I had finally made my dream life in the city with the great job and loving boyfriend. But was there really a choice not to go? 

I found a wonderful job, a quaint house to rent, my boyfriend was working on joining me in Binghamton, and my favorite pizza place was only miles away. Life was good. 

Until I met my neighbor. 

It's been three years since I'd seen Aaron Walters, and my God is he all kinds of sexy gorgeous. Figures. He was supposed to be my forever, the man I grew old with, but he had different plans. How can a man who ripped my heart apart still trip me up? How can he make me still want him now more than ever?

I’m tempted, I’m drawn toward him, I’m completely and utterly unaware that I’m dating his biological brother.

Now two men own my heart. The question is, which brother will I choose?

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Why? Why does he have to magically appear in my life? Moving back to Binghamton, I thought about the possibility of maybe running into him, but I thought it unlikely, something that would never really happen.
Boy, was I wrong.
What a sick joke life is playing on me.
Aaron Walters, the boy who broke me into pieces is my neighbor.
I can’t fathom the impact I feel already.
Seeing him in hip-hugging jeans and a tight, plain shirt did a number on me. It kept me up all night as memories of what we used to have flooded my mind.
His voice.
His stature.
The way he used to kiss my neck.
The way I felt so protected in his arms.
Too bad his arms couldn’t protect me from his devastating, heart-breaking self.
And hell, he looked good. Too good.
He’s always been tall with handsome features and a chiseled jaw, but now he’s bulked up to the point that I could see his abs flexing under his shirt, the same shirt that stretched over his biceps.
But it wasn’t his muscles or handsome features that once again made my heart ache, it was those eyes. So bright, so blue, so kind, but still so sad. It reminded me of the first day I met him, of the day he stole my heart from every other man on the market.
Broken, unsure, yet yearning for love. It was all there, and like experiencing a moment of déjà vu, I was transported back into a time when I felt invisible, like I could conquer anything with him at my side.
Once again, I was wrong.

OMG this book! I can't even tell you just how much I loved it.

Aaron absolutely stole my heart! I mean he seriously gutted me! (In a good way haha) (goodbye cruel world haha)

He's just such an amazing character. And so kind and sweet and gahh!!

But he's so broken too. And my heart just seriously ached for him as the book went.

Meghan just has the most amazing way of writing such emotional and yet cheeky and funny books, and I absolutely love them. She's one of my favorite authors, and when I was contacted about reviewing this one. I just couldn't pass it up.

And I'm so happy I didn't. Because this one wasn't just Aaron that made the book so great either. Amelia was a fun character too. She's so bright. And so strong. And I respected that this wasn't just some love triangle where the character can't make up their mind and plays both guys back and forth.

And Amanda, Amelia's best friend. I loved that girl! She was such a fun supporting character. Plus all the glimpses of our favorite Twisted Twosome and My Best Friends Ex people made me all sorts of squee worthy happy

I like that you could see the struggle between following your heart even at the risk of breaking it again. And the struggle of taking the safe way out. Both take so much guts, and I adored how Amelia handled it. And how Aaron actually gave her space and let her make whatever decision she would potentially make.

This book just has such a good mix of emotion and humor. And it made for such a fun balanced read that I just didn't want to put down. Seriously, there was a couple nights there it was getting close to 4 AM and I was STRUGGLING to keep my eyes even open to keep reading haha.

I loved that I got a little of everything in this book though. It was written so well. And I would suggest it to anyone.

It cracks me up, because I saw Meghan post something the other day about possibly writing her books to be submitted to hallmark to be turned into a screenplay. And I totally could have seen Twisted Twosome or My Best Friends Ex being one. And I'm so freaking sold after this book now too. (I mean it's possible that for the past week I've been binge watching Hallmark Christmas movies, and that's why I think it haha.) But I am so for sure that I would love to see these boys shenanigans in a movie on there. They fit that channel so well, and it cracks me up picturing it (Come on. You totally know you are too. Those boys pigging out on Little Debbie's.) Yup! You just busted out laughing too. I know it haha
😜😜😜 

I without a shadow of a doubt give THE OTHER BROTHER

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐5 STARS⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Born in New York and raised in Southern California, Meghan has grown into a sassy, peanut butter eating, blonde haired swearing, animal hoarding lady. She is known to bust out and dance if "It's Raining Men" starts beating through the air and heaven forbid you get a margarita in her, protect your legs because they may be humped.

Once she started commuting for an hour and twenty minutes every day to work for three years, she began to have conversations play in her head, real life, deep male voices and dainty lady coos kind of conversations. Perturbed and confused, she decided to either see a therapist about the hot and steamy voices running through her head or start writing them down. She decided to go with the cheaper option and started writing... enter her first novel, Caught Looking.

Now you can find the spicy, most definitely on the border of lunacy, kind of crazy lady residing in Colorado with the love of her life and her five, furry four legged children, hiking a trail or hiding behind shelves at grocery stores, wondering what kind of lube the nervous stranger will bring home to his wife. Oh and she loves a good boob squeeze!

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Blog Tour/ Excerpt Reveal: The Hot Shot (Game On #4) By: Kristen Callihan

I'm so excited to get to share my review and a super fun excerpt of THE HOT SHOT with ya'll today.

I absolutely adore Kristen's GAME ON series, and Chess and Finn's story was a super fun romantic read.

I want to give a huge thanks to InkSlinger for sending out this pretty for review too. Ya'll are the stinking best 😉

First we were friends. Then we were roommates. Now I want more…

What can I say about Chess Copper? The woman is capable of bringing me to my knees. I know this about five minutes after getting naked for her.

No one is more surprised than me. The prickly photographer my team hired to shoot our annual charity calendar isn’t my usual type. She’s defense to my offense, a challenge at every turn. But when I’m with her, all the regrets and darkness goes away. She makes life fun.

I want to know Chess, be close to her. Which is a bad idea.

Chess is looking for a relationship. I’ve never given a woman more than one night. But when fate leaves Chess without a home, I step up and offer her mine. We’re roommates now. Friends without benefits. But it’s getting harder to keep our hands off each other. And the longer we live together the more I realize she’s becoming my everything.

Trick is… Now that I’ve made her believe I’m a bad bet, how do I convince her to give this player a true shot at forever?

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Kristen Callihan is an author because there is nothing else she’d rather be. She is a three-time RITA nominee and winner of two RT Reviewer’s Choice awards. Her novels have garnered starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly and the Library Journal, as well as being awarded top picks by many reviewers. Her debut book FIRELIGHT received RT Magazine’s Seal of Excellence, was named a best book of the year by Library Journal , best book of Spring 2012 by Publisher’s Weekly, and was named the best romance book of 2012 by ALA RUSA. When she is not writing, she is reading.

WEBSITE / FACEBOOK / TWITTER / AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

I was so excited to get my hands on this book. while it wasn't the next one is was expecting in the series, it sounded just as good and I really was happy to get an early copy to review.

The characters sounded cute, and hey I get to see more Dex in this one.... happy reader right there hehe.

And while I have to admit. This one wasn't my favorite of the series (sorry no one will beat out my man Dex and even Gray holds a tight push for my top one haha)

I did like Finn and Chess's story too.

The two characters for the most part were pretty fun and easy going. and I loved the easy witty banter between them.

I found myself snorting a few times at some of the dialog. And even enjoyed the the little retro feel this book had at times.

Plus it actually had some football being played in it. Which was a plus for me. I see so many sports romances lately where there actually isn't even hardly any sports being played. And as a sports lover, I want to see at least glimpses of it.

Chess was a fun character. she's a little outside the norm and I liked that about her. She's smart and funny and a whole lot sarcastic, and that played right into my love for characters that can do that.

I will admit she probably isn't one of my all time favorite female characters. But ya'll know how I feel about them, and if I'm saying good things that means she's pretty good. Plus there is just something about her and the way she interacts with everyone that made me smile. I could easily see myself being friends with a real person like her.

And then there's Finn and her. They really do make an adorable little friendship. I'm a sucker for a good old guy girl friendship. And thought it was totally adorable him and Chess together. They dish it out just as well as the other takes it. And the 2 honestly are hilarious to read the dialog between. It's flirty and a tad ribbing. But fun and so so cute.

And Finn is just to adorable and sexy. And a total goofball. That man had me laughing so hard. But we also get this vulnerable unsure side too. And I loved seeing the contrast of two when reading about this big old muscular football player on the field. And silly joker off it. He made the story easy and fun. And while I wanted to smack him in the head with his own football a couple times, I loved the big guy.

Plus I loved James. He's one of those background characters I kept wanting to see little glimpses of. Because he's so funny. And a little out there at times. He would be the ultimate friend to have. And I loved how easy going and silly he was, down to his crazy clothing choices.

There were a few things that didn't jive with me on this book. But nothing too big to write home too. I still enjoyed the book a lot. And thought it had a great story line. Plus it was fast paced and read like the super cute romance I hoped it would (how many times have I used the word cute now? hehe)

And don't think I won't be ready for the next book in the series. I'm just as excited to get my hands on whatever Kristen has planned for us as I was for this one.

I give THE HOT SHOT ⭐⭐⭐⭐4 STARS⭐⭐⭐⭐

CHESS

Grumbling, I toss on some black lounge pants and my oversized Tulane t-shirt and head to the drugstore. 

My head throbs by the time I get there, and my insides are writhing. I rest my hand against my lower stomach and grab a basket before calling James to complain. 

“I swear,” I tell him as I grab a bottle of painkillers. “It’s like this entire day has been cursed.” 

He snickers. “Curse. Get it? Curse?” 

I roll my eyes, even though he can’t see me. “Laugh it up. Meanwhile, it feels as if someone is playing Battleship in my uterus.” 

“Poor Chessie bear. At least we know why you were in such a foul mood.” 

A flush washes over my cheeks. “Yeah.” Lie. Lie. Lie. A tub of salted caramel gelato makes its way into the basket. 

“Tell me you’re getting some gelato,” James says. 

I smile. “Just grabbed it.” 

“Salted caramel?” 

“You know it.” 

I find the feminine products aisle and search for my brand. “I’m going to go home, take a long bath with my gelato, and forget this fucking day.” Forget Finn. “And then I’m going to go on Amazon and buying a freaking year’s supply of tampons so I don’t have to make these kinds of emergency runs anymore.” 

A low, deep chuckle rumbles from behind me, and all the tiny hairs lift on my arms. 

“But you’ll still need your gelato,” a familiar—fuck me, seriously?—voice points out. 

My insides swoop even as my cheeks burn. 

“Who is that?” James asks in my ear. 

I slowly turn on one heel. “The plague,” I say, glaring up at Finn Mannus’s smiling face. 

“From asshat to plague.” Finn scrunches up his brow. “I’m not sure if that’s a step down or a tie.” 

“Who is that?” James nearly yells now. 

I don’t take my eyes off Finn. “I’ll call you back.” 

James’s squawks of protest cut off as I hit the end button. 

“Are you stalking me, Mannus?” 

Finn a rests his hands low on his lean hips. “Having a healthy amount of conceit myself, I have to admire yours, but no, buttercup. My buddy Woodson lives a few blocks away. It’s poker night. I’m stocking up on beer.”

It’s only then I notice a twelve pack tucked under his other arm. 

“And tampons?” I ask, with a pointed look around the aisle we’re standing in. 

 “Not tonight,” he says easily. “Though we used to keep a pack of them back in college. Light flows were perfect for stopping up bloody noses.” 

A snort escapes me. “Now there’s a visual.” Somehow, I’ve taken a step closer to him. He’s freshly showered, the golden brown strands of his hair still damp at his temples. And I wonder if he’s just come from the gym or practice. “So back in college you went and bought these tampons?” 

“Nah,” he says with a cheeky smile. “I’d ask one of the girls hanging around to get me some.” 

“Of course you did.” My nose wrinkles with annoyance. 

“Give me a little credit, Chess. I’d buy them now if I had to.” 

“Hmm…” I eye him, trying not to return his smile. If only because it’s more fun when he teases. “So why are you in this aisle now, if not for potential nosebleed needs?”

“That’s easy.” He steps closer, a warm wall of muscle and clean scent. “I heard your voice.” 

For a second I just blink. “You recognized my voice?” 

His gaze darts over my face as if he’s trying to get a read on why I’m gaping at him. “Not to be…ah…rude, but you’re loud when you talk on the phone.” 

“Yeah, but… You recognized it.” We’d only just met. It occurs to me that I’d recognized his both times he’d snuck up on me. Then again, his voice is distinctive, flowing like hot honey when he’s relaxed or hammering down like iron to rock when he’s taking command of a situation. 

A soft flush of pink tints the tips of his ears. If I wasn’t staring at him, I might have missed it. He shifts his weight. “Was I not supposed to?”

“No. Yes.” I shake my head and laugh. “I don’t know.” 

He grins then. “You’re cute when you’re flustered.”

“I’m not flustered.” I am. 

Review/Excerpt Tour: Wolf Prey(Wolf Cove Book 3) By: Nina West

 

Nina West's WOLF PREY, the highly anticipated next book in her Wolf Cove Series is now available! Check out all of the stops and excerpts on the review & excerpt tour for WOLF PREY and be sure to grab your copy today!

 

About WOLF PREY (Wolf Cove Series #3):

Forced to leave Alaska to run the family farm while her father recovers from a tragic accident, Abbi heads home knowing she has the one thing she wants most again –Henry’s affections. She’s determined to not let anyone get in the way of that again.

But love for Abbi has never been easy.

With an overbearing mother who believes she has the right to approve who her daughter loves, a childhood ex-boyfriend who will do anything to win her back, and a wealthy, handsome boyfriend who always gets what he wants, Abbi soon realizes she may have to make some impossible choices.

Wolf Prey is Book 3 in the Wolf Cove series and should be read after finishing Wolf Bait (Book 1) and Wolf Bite (Book 2).

** The Wolf Cove Series will only be available for sale at Amazon. You can download a free Kindle reading app for any smartphone or tablet here: http://amzn.to/1MIyrHi

Amazon US | Amazon UK

WOLF PREY can be read from free in Kindle Unlimited!

Add WOLF PREY to your Goodreads!

       

Nina West’s WOLF PREY – Review & Excerpt Tour Schedule:

September 19^th

Books Need TLC – Review

Books,Dreams,Life – Excerpt

Rock Out With Sweet Reads – Excerpt

September 20^th

Bookaholics Reading Haven – Review & Excerpt

Eye in Bookland – Review

Brittany’s Book Blog – Excerpt

September 21^st

SBB Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Wicked Babes Blog Reviews – Review & Excerpt

September 22^nd

Sheila's Book Corner – Review & Excerpt

Reads All the Book – Review & Excerpt

September 23^rd

Battery Operated Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

The Heathers' Blog – Review

PBC – Excerpt

September 24^th

1-chick and her kindle – Review & Excerpt

Ceres Books World – Review

September 25^th

A Brit and a Yank – Excerpt

Bookaliciousbabes – Review

September 26^th

bookshelf dreaming – Review & Excerpt

EskieMama Reads – Excerpt

In Between The Pages – Review & Excerpt

September 27^th

Deluged with Books Cafe – Review & Excerpt

Reading After Dark – Review

NightWolf Book Blog – Review

September 28^th

Love Affair With Fiction – Review & Excerpt

phishbowl's bookshelf – Review

She's a Lip Biter – Review & Excerpt

September 29^th

Majorly Delicious – Review

Book Lovers Hangout – Review & Excerpt

More Books Than LIvros – Review

September 30^th

G & T's Indie Café – Excerpt

My Book Filled Life – Review

Pink Lace & Silver Buckles Book Blog – Review

 

Excerpt

What’s wrong? Does hearing that they’re with someone else bother you?”

              “No! Of course not!” Just as quickly, I meet his gaze. “I wish I could erase what happened.”

              He strolls slowly toward me, his scrutiny of the barn now shifted fully to me. To my face, and then lower, over the buttons of my dress that run from neck to knee. The dress does very little for my figure, though Celeste did put in darts at the chest to give it at least a bit of shape. “Why? Because you didn’t enjoy it?”

              I open my mouth to say “yes,” but falter, because that would be a lie. I did enjoy it. “Because I don’t want you to be mad at me.”

              “I let you go. I have no right to be mad at you for what happened.”

              “So it doesn’t bother you?”

              “That you were with someone else? I fucking hat it. Every time I think about it, it’s like a punch to my gut.” He heaves a sigh, reaching up to run his finger along the collar of my dress. “But I’m not angry with you. I’m angry with myself for ever allowing things to go the way they did. Had I been completely open with you, had I put you before myself and Wolf Hotels, we could have avoided it all.”

              His fingers leave my dress to wipe the tear that slipped from my eye. “I’ll try not to bring it up again. Okay?”

              My head bobs up and down. I slide off the bale of hay and reach for him, needing to feel his mouth on mine, his body against mine. I press myself against him and rope my arms around his neck, pulling him into my mouth, trying to convey how badly I want him, how much I feel, with each graze of my lip, with each stroke of my tongue.

              “You can’t start this now, Abbi,” he growls between kisses, his arms tightening around me, pulling me closer to him. I feel him growing hard against me.

              “Why not?” It comes out in a painful moan.

              “Because I have to go if I want to get to New York tonight, and we both know your mother would not be okay with his happening under her roof. Neither would your father. I can’t disrespect them like that.”

              “It’s the barn, not the house,” I counter with a pout. He’s right.

              And yet I can’t just let him go. I’ve been watching him all day long, sneaking in touches wherever I can, thinking about kissing him but unable to, imagining him undressed in front of me, remembering what it looks like when he strokes himself for me at night.

              I’m completely wound up, and no amount of touching myself is going to satisfy me.

              Plus, who knows when I’ll see him again!

              “Hold on a second.” I pry myself away from him and dart over to the open doors. It looks like the last of the revelers have left. All the cars are gone, even the Enderbeys’. I can see Mama moving about in the kitchen. No doubt Daddy’s in his bed already, exhausted from the day.

              My stomach flutters with excitement. “Follow me.” I smile at him as I head to the other side, the one that faces the open fields. The sun’s just dipping below the horizon, leaving streaks of hazy pink and purple, promising another hot day tomorrow.

              “What’s out here?” he asks, eyeing the stack of hay that’s sitting just outside the door. It’s a nice place to sit and rest after a long day.

              “No roof.” I smile as I reach up to unfasten the top button of my dress.

              He smirks. “Sex by semantics?”

              “It’s the only way.” I drop my voice to a soft lull. “And I need you.”

Oh my goodness ya'll!!!

I LOVED this book so much.

I remember back after the first book in this series came out I was a little leary to start it. (Even if everyone was freaking out about how good it was. Stupid me for not just blindly trusting them.They don't normally steer me wrong haha)

But seriously I remember going man do I really want to get into this this? And then Book one went on sale for free on Amazon and there I was diving right into Abbi and Henry's story. And I couldn't put it down! Like 2 days tops it took me to read. And honestly Wolf Prey went about the same way.

Nina has this was of completely captivating you as a reader, and draws you into her stories. Like there were times I was so wrapped up with everything going on with Abbi that I forgot to even check the time sometimes. And when I finally looked at the clock I realized I had been reading for hours straight.

But aren't the books like that the best ones out there? The ones that can so fully amerce you that it's like being a part of the story yourself. You can so clearly see the pages unfolding in your mind that it's almost like watching it happen rather than reading it (although I guess that's the beauty of reading. What it has the ability to do)

But it's not just Nina's beautifully seductive writing that does the job either.

It's her ability to create these intricate multi dimensional characters too.

I found myself so wrapped up in everything Abbi would go through. I would grow attached to Henry and then want to smack the guy too hehe.

They would make me feel so invested in their stories. So ready to choose a side and want to fight fr that character to have what they wanted. And then the addition of Jed (Which BTW I don't like that name. No clue why... I just don't. Maybe too many scary movies where the hillbilly crazy is named Jed or something ha!)

And yes even Abbi's overbearing quite aggravating mother was a good character. In her own way. I think it takes  alot of talent to write characters that we want to dislike sometimes. The ones that well I know I do this, want to reach into the book and freaking wring their necks (and I'm not talking about those annoying female characters I'm always complaining about. I dislike them for far different reasons)

Something else I just want to add about this whole thing was my adoring affections for Henry. I go back and forth how I feel about these alpha type characters. Love them hate them. Love them hate them. It's a cycle. Usually I start off as any sort of feminist would going don't take that garbage from him lady. He can't boss you around like that. You have a say you have an opinion and demands too. And yeah... That feminist crud tends to disappear pretty quickly and I totally cave adoring the hot dude, grumbling the whole time hehe. But seriously. I love those characters.There is just something about them that is so hot and so controlled. And that was Henry. I remember back in Wolf Bait being like girl run. Run far. You don't need no man like that (How stupidly naive I was) because I found myself rooting for Henry in this book. Absolutely hating Jeb on principal because he was not Henry in fact. (Yeah yeah there were a few things I liked about Jeb... *grumbles)

But seriously Like there's a few parts in particular where Henry asserted himself and man I was a total puddle of goo. It was so hot and would lead to even hotter sexy times*swoon

That man is just prime HOTT man, and I really loved how well Nina wrote him. How much personality and mystery she was able to give us while not making me feel like I wasn't getting him. Like I needed to break him down to figure him out (Although let's be honest it's me... So of course I was looking for things about him that probably weren't even there. Me ever the detective haha!)

And lets not forget about Abbi. I really really like her. (Yes yes get your gasping and shock over with now. I do tend to like SOME female characters)

something just clicked between her and I though. I felt so many things reading her story as it went. I would feel happy for her, and sad, and outraged on her behalf when her mom got all overprotective/overbearing crazy.

I loved that I bonded to this character when I really didn't expect that I would so much at the start of this series. So I have a really healthy respect for Nina, and her giving me this strong character I could follow and enjoy through the books.

So while I know this review is a tad shorter than my normal ones, I just want to add in case it wasn't clear. That I really really truly loved Wolf Prey and do hope that you go out and either start it, or if you haven't picked up book one yet go grab it. You won't be disappointed one bit. Take my word on that ;)

I give WOLF PREY *****5 STARS*****

And don’t miss the first books in the Wolf Cove Series, WOLF BAIT and WOLF BITE!

WOLF BAIT Amazon US WOLF BAIT Amazon UK

WOLF BITE Amazon US WOLF BITE Amazon UK

The Wolf Cove Series can be read from free in Kindle Unlimited!

About Nina West:

Nina West lives in the city but spends her summers in the wilderness with her husband. She loves having a steaming cup of cocoa in one hand and a steamy story full of angst in the other. Follow her on Facebook or on Twitter!

 

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Winner Takes All (A Champion Valley Novel) By: Erin Kern

First off I want to send a huge thank you to the team over at Forever Romance. For not only sending me the ARC for this one, but for all the work they put in to getting posts for us bloggers made up and sent.

They work so incredibly hard and I can't you enough guys *Kisses and Hugs

Money. Fame. Endorsements. Blake Carpenter had it all—before his professional football career spiraled out of control. Determined to rebuild his life, he takes on coaching the high school team in his Colorado hometown. Despite a few fumbles, Blake knows he can lead these boys to victory. As long as he can keep his eyes on the prize and off the team's distractingly gorgeous physical therapist.

Annabelle Turner knows all about the scandal that cost Blake his NFL career, and she'll be damned if she's going to let his mistakes hurt her team. What she doesn't count on is the intense attraction that turns every heated run-in they have into a wildly erotic competition. Point by point, play by play, kiss by kiss, they try to keep things professional for the good of the team. But when the score is this close—and the passion this fierce—it's anybody's game . . .

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I was quite surprised by this book.

I'm always up for a good sports romance. so when the awesome team at Forever reached out to review an early copy if the book, I jumped on it.

But this one was really nothing like I expected. Blake and Annabelle were two characters that both had extremely strong personalities, and where I thought things would burn Bright and hot and then explode just as quick, they sort of took the more slow burn path.

Don't get me wrong. The chemistry between the two was hot for sure, and I loved the bit of tension that would play between them.
But for once a book just kind of let things simmer. and I found that to be a great change.

Plus it was extremely fun seeing a book about a coach. I read so many football player books rather than coaches, that this book made for a fun change for me.
Plus Blake's back story while a bit sad, I think played the perfect part in this book. it made him stronger in a way while also leaving him open to vulnerabilities (if that makes sense to be both)
He was exactly the driving force the high school football team needed, but also by returning to his roots, it allowed him to battle his own demons and see how these kids and Annabelle could heal and make him better.

I also loved Blake's alpha side. It wasn't that let me chain you to the bed type, but more just the I get my way and not many people care to argue with me type. And in all honesty I found it pretty endearing.

This gruff broody character actually kinda had this fun enduring side once he finally pulled his head out of you know where and realized he didn't have to choose between football and love.

There were a couple times I wanted to smack him upside the head when he would make a dumb choice hehe. But in all Blake really was one of those characters that grew so much as the story progressed.

I really liked him, and found myself not only cheering for his redeeming success but also for the kids on the team he coached.

The biggest shock I think  for me in this book was Annabelle Though.

And I'm pretty sure it's because I saw a fictionalized version of myself. Someone who really had given up a lot to be the ones to take care of a loved one. to pretty much give up your own happiness and free time to take care of those that can't and slowly loose your passions and things to it.

But also Annabelle's need for structure and control. and it reminded me so much of everything going on in my life right now. and I just bonded to the character.

I'm sure many of you know if you follow my reviews, that I very rarely take kindly to female characters. Most of the time they annoy me or aggravate me being whiny and naive. So for me to find this character that I bonded with so much is a huge thing for me as a reader. And then to find so many similarities between us on top of it.It was sort of refreshing and scary at the same time. Because it put some things in perspective I try to ignore or pretend I'm not doing.

I know what it's like to care for an ailing mother. To drop your dreams and things that you would rather be doing to take care of her. To have a sibling that has other things going on leaving you to pretty much take the brunt of the work. To stay close to home because you have an obligation to family.

It's hard to realize that you give up a bit of yourself sometimes to be the person others need. And seeing all that Annabelle deals with allowed me to see that.

And having structure and control of everything else  in my life lets me keep going. It keeps me sane, and lets me feel like not everything is out of my control. And I feel like Annabelle kinda experienced something similar.

Like I said. This character kinda bonded with me unexpectedly.

But also something I want to add about Annabelle is how similar to Blake she is.

She's also this alpha type, and I really liked seeing the two butt heads and go at it. Neither would back down, and neither gave up. and it made it a fun story. 

And to be serious here, almost every character in this book was fun and lovable. Even the crazy sex hungry older ladies hehe.

But it was Blake's cousin Brandon, his best friend Cam, Annabelle's friend Stella and so many others that rounded this book out well.

They allowed for this great comic relief at times,and gave you glimpses into the two's lives that they were more reluctant to share.

I can't wait to see what Erin has planned for us next with Brandon and Stella.

I without a doubt give WINNER TAKES ALL

*****5 STARS *****