Playbook Series

Snapped (Playbook #4)

Snapped (Playbook #4)

By: Alexa Martin

Blurb:

With the stakes this high, it’s no longer just a game for the quarterback in this romance by the author of Blitzed.

Elliot Reed is living her best life—or pretending to. She owes it to her dad’s memory to be happy and make the most of her new job as Strategic Communications Manager for the Denver Mustangs. Things are going well until star quarterback Quinton Howard Jr. decides to use the field as his stage and becomes the first player to take a knee during the national anthem.

As the son of a former professional athlete, Quinton knows the good, the bad, and the ugly about football. He’s worked his entire life to gain recognition in the sport, and now that he has it, he’s not about to waste his chance to change the league for better. Not even the brilliant but infuriating Elliot, who the Mustangs assign to manage him, will get Quinton back in line.

A rocky initial meeting only leads to more tension between Quinton and Elliot. But as her new job forces them to spend time together, she realizes they may have more in common than she could’ve ever imagined. With her job and his integrity on the line, this is one coin toss that nobody can win.

Review:

I seriously thought I’d already written and posted this review. The holiday season has me all messed up.

Snapped was the book I most expected from a series based on football players, but also the one I feared the most. There is so much going on in the real world, and it could have so easily been done poorly. I think that Martin did the best job a romance book could accomplish. I was impressed.

Elliot has suffered a significant loss with the death of her only parent. She struggles to cope with that almost a year later and has buried herself in her job. She is biracial and has felt torn in two her entire life. One of her defenses is ignoring certain things.

Quinton is living his own nightmare but refuses to back down. He’s got a platform, and he’s going to use it to the best of his ability. He’s a pretty great hero. He’s not pushy, he knows his own mind, and he doesn’t want Elliot to change. He just needs her to stop ignoring certain things.

They worked well together. Their romance was subtle at first, considering Elliot didn’t think he liked her. Once it got going, it was full-on because, at that point, they’d become friends. I like friends to lovers, so I enjoyed that a lot.

I’m not sure if there’s going to be a book after this one. There isn’t any unmarried person in the book that stood out as a possibility for another story. However, one couple is experiencing issues that I would love to see a story about. A short story, at least. If that doesn’t happen, Snapped was an excellent book to go out on.

4/5

Blitzed (Playbook #3)

Blitzed

Blitzed (Playbook #3)

By: Alexa Martin

Blurb:

According to Brynn Larson, Maxwell Lewis is more trouble than he’s worth. She doesn’t care if he’s a football god with a rock-hard body that brings most women to their knees. After an encounter that ends poorly, she’s not interested in giving him a second chance. The last thing Brynn expects is for him to turn up at her bar months later, hat in hand. It doesn’t matter if he brings more customers to her business–she’s still not going on a date with him.

Maxwell knows he made a mistake. He’d been waiting to make his move on Brynn since the day he laid eyes on her and he was finally ready to go for it until he screwed up. He wishes he could tell her the truth about what happened that night, but he just can’t. He can’t tell anyone, so he’ll make amends and hope she’ll forgive him.

Brynn’s not like other women, though. Playing for the Mustangs doesn’t impress her and gifts make her scoff. Max will have to bring his A game if he hopes to win her over.

Review:

Brynn has been one of my favorite characters in the series so far. She knows her mind and goes after what she wants. At least, when it comes to work. She’s had a crush on Maxwell for years and just sat by lusting after him.

Maxwell is super smart and a fantastic athlete. He makes the all-star team, or something like that, every year, and he went to Princeton. He’s also shy unless he’s putting on a persona for his job. I like shy dudes. He’s also very aware of consent.

I loved that they were friends beforehand. There was a ton of sexual tension, so it was not what I consider friends to lovers, but Brynn really tried to make people believe that’s all they were.

I was a little disappointed in the small drama between them at the end. I didn’t find it believable at all. Brynn was always worried that she would do something terrible but immediately jumps to believing that Maxwell is the bad guy. I didn’t buy her reasoning at all. It just felt off. I could have also done without everyone telling her she’ll change her mind about kids. She is very adamant she doesn’t want any, but in the end, she’s planning on them.

3.5/5

Fumbled (Playbook #2)

Fumbled

Fumbled (Playbook #2)

By: Alexa Martin

Blurb:

Single-mother Poppy Patterson moved across the country when she was sixteen and pregnant to find a new normal. After years of hard work, she’s built a life she loves. It may include a job at a nightclub, weekend soccer games, and more stretch marks than she anticipated, but it’s all hers, and nobody can take that away. Well, except for one person.

TK Moore, the starting wide receiver for the Denver Mustangs, dreamt his entire life about being in the NFL. His world is football, parties, and women. Maybe at one point he thought his future would play out with his high school sweetheart by his side, but Poppy is long gone and he’s moved on.

When Poppy and TK cross paths in the most unlikely of places, emotions they’ve suppressed for years come rushing back. But with all the secrets they never told each other lying between them, they’ll need more than a dating playbook to help them navigate their relationship.

Review:

I cried through this entire book. I’m a crier, so don’t take that as a sign this is a sad book. I cried cause Poppy was such a good mom. I cried cause I could feel her fear. I cried cause it was so happy. So don’t worry, unless you’re like me you’ll just really enjoy this book.

Poppy is the level of mom I hope to attain. She dedicates everything to her son, and the love jumps off the pages. I also agree one hundred percent about her not letting him play football.

T.K. has a gorgeous ass. It is mentioned a LOT. He’s a good guy, but after six years in the NFL, he’s suffering from early symptoms of CTE. I so appreciated it being talked about in Fumbled. I was a little annoyed that it wasn’t discussed much in the last book, but it was a decent part of this story. If you’re going to write a football story, I don’t know how you could avoid it.

There was not much wooing with Poppy and T.K. They’d had a previous romance, and while a lot had changed, the feelings were still there. They made a sweet couple, but Poppy and Ace and all of Poppy’s friends were more interesting than T.K.

This was an excellent follow up to Intercepted and has me looking forward to the next book in the series.

4/5

Intercepted (Playbook #1)

Intercepted

Intercepted (Playbook #1)

By: Alexa Martin

Blurb:

Marlee thought she scored the man of her dreams only to be scorched by a bad breakup. But there’s a new player on the horizon, and he’s in a league of his own…

Marlee Harper is the perfect girlfriend. She’s definitely had enough practice by dating her NFL-star boyfriend for the last ten years. But when she discovers he has been tackling other women on the sly, she vows to never date an athlete again. There’s just one problem: Gavin Pope, the new hotshot quarterback and a fling from the past, has Marlee in his sights.

Gavin fights to show Marlee he’s nothing like her ex. Unfortunately, not everyone is ready to let her escape her past. The team’s wives, who never led the welcome wagon, are not happy with Marlee’s return. They have only one thing on their minds: taking her down. But when the gossip makes Marlee public enemy number one, she worries about more than just her reputation.

Between their own fumbles and the wicked wives, it will take a Hail Mary for Marlee and Gavin’s relationship to survive the season.

Review:

Intercepted was a lovely palette cleanser after the last book I read. I was a little bit concerned at the beginning, though. Marlee is in an abusive relationship; her boyfriend of almost a decade is a pro football player that takes a lot out on her. I was starting to wonder why I kept picking up books with women in abusive relationships, but thankfully it didn’t last long.

Marlee was easily one of my favorite heroines of the year. Her humor was hilarious, and I loved the relationships she had with people. She’s the type of character you wish you could be friends with in real life. Seeing her discover again who she is without the dead weight of her ex was beautiful.

Gavin was sex on a stick. He tried to protect her but would occasionally go too far. He didn’t give Marlee a chance to defend herself; something that ended up biting him in the ass later.

Marlee and Gavin made a great couple, but what I loved the most was the ending. Marlee could have so easily just jumped from her ex into a relationship with Gavin; instead, she took the time to succeed on her own. I really, really liked that part of the story.

I’m not a football fan and getting to see an almost behind the scenes look did not win me over, but I loved the enthusiasm Marlee had, and I’m excited to read the next book in the series.

4/5