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annahamburger's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Racism, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
agnesbebon's review against another edition
4.0
This was stupidly sweet and surprisingly spicy! Both characters had well developed personal story lines in addition to their romantic one and the characters are diverse. I love a dude who pines, makes intentions clear, and puts the ball in the woman’s court and I love a strong woman who doesn’t compromise her goals. It was sometimes hard to tell when brief flashbacks end or when internal monologue ended and dialogue started in the audiobook. Overall really enjoyed this on audio!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Sexism, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Alcoholism and Sexual assault
stitchesandstationery's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Rhi is the powerful, brilliant, and sexy founder of the popular dating app, Crush, and Samson is the ex-NFL player turned spokesperson for her rival company. They've hooked up once (thanks to her own app), and it left them both with a whole mix of emotions. Without knowing who the other is, they both attend a tech conference and end up meeting up for the first time since That Night. They're forced into closer proximity to one another as they decide to take a leap that will help both of their companies, and that goes, well, exactly how you'd expect it to when two people have known each other as intimately as they have.
I loved both of them. Rhi started as a boss babe who never slept with the same man twice (a trauma response to her last serious relationship) who was then able to balance her professional life and her focus on her work and her career with her relationships - with her family, her friends, and with Samson. Samson was multidimensional and powerful, and while I originally found myself wishing he hadn't been a hulking ex-linebacker and had been the mildly geeky owner of a rival company, the added element of CTE and the death of both his father and his uncle was surprising. It added a wonderful level of depth to Samson that made him even more loveable.
They diversity of the characters in this book should definitely be acknowledged - there is completely wonderful representation of different races, different sexualities (okay we could have seen more of this, but it was there), and different levels of mental wellness. It was fascinating and fun and steamy as hell.
I loved both of them. Rhi started as a boss babe who never slept with the same man twice (a trauma response to her last serious relationship) who was then able to balance her professional life and her focus on her work and her career with her relationships - with her family, her friends, and with Samson. Samson was multidimensional and powerful, and while I originally found myself wishing he hadn't been a hulking ex-linebacker and had been the mildly geeky owner of a rival company, the added element of CTE and the death of both his father and his uncle was surprising. It added a wonderful level of depth to Samson that made him even more loveable.
They diversity of the characters in this book should definitely be acknowledged - there is completely wonderful representation of different races, different sexualities (okay we could have seen more of this, but it was there), and different levels of mental wellness. It was fascinating and fun and steamy as hell.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
ticktock's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Sexual harassment
sarahm96's review against another edition
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Gaslighting
kfmcf's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This book has a solid balance between character and plot. I am someone who prefers weak plots over weak characters, but I also, of course, appreciate a happy medium.
I found both leads likeable and grounded. Samson was sweet but not so absurdly so it became unbelievable. Rhi was spunky and fiery but showed a vulnerability that rounded her character out well. I do wish we had gotten to see a bit more of the side characters. For how long this book was we got a lot of the leads (which isn't bad) but we didn't get much time with some of the compatriots like Lakshmi, Harris, etc. I don't mention Katrina on that list because I know she's the FL of book #2.
Plot-wise, I knew where the story was leading but it mostly made sense and had a few surprises thrown in. I won't go into detail for spoilers sake but the ending was expected but made sense. Also, I do want to mention that this is one of the only romance books without an epilogue that I've read where I still feel fulfilled by the plot and characters' arcs. I do want to commend Alisha Rai on that because it is usually a severe pet peeve of mine.
Lastly, I want to say that I greatly appreciated this book's focus on the brain effects of prolonged football playing. As someone who likes sports, football has always been infuriating to me because of the disturbingly high rates of brain injury and sustained aftereffects. This book doesn't beat around the bush about the issue but it also shows why players keep playing. Focusing on this topic made this book have a more solid footing, in my opinion.
Overall, I do recommend this book and look forward to reading the sequels!
I found both leads likeable and grounded. Samson was sweet but not so absurdly so it became unbelievable. Rhi was spunky and fiery but showed a vulnerability that rounded her character out well. I do wish we had gotten to see a bit more of the side characters. For how long this book was we got a lot of the leads (which isn't bad) but we didn't get much time with some of the compatriots like Lakshmi, Harris, etc. I don't mention Katrina on that list because I know she's the FL of book #2.
Plot-wise, I knew where the story was leading but it mostly made sense and had a few surprises thrown in. I won't go into detail for spoilers sake but the ending was expected but made sense. Also, I do want to mention that this is one of the only romance books without an epilogue that I've read where I still feel fulfilled by the plot and characters' arcs. I do want to commend Alisha Rai on that because it is usually a severe pet peeve of mine.
Lastly, I want to say that I greatly appreciated this book's focus on the brain effects of prolonged football playing. As someone who likes sports, football has always been infuriating to me because of the disturbingly high rates of brain injury and sustained aftereffects. This book doesn't beat around the bush about the issue but it also shows why players keep playing. Focusing on this topic made this book have a more solid footing, in my opinion.
Overall, I do recommend this book and look forward to reading the sequels!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Grief, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Alcohol
kylieqrada's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I liked this alot, but more as a contemporary with romance elements than as a straight romance. I liked our MCs together, but they didn't jump off the page for me like other romance pairings I've read lately. I loved Alisha Rai's writing, and her characterization is divine. Plus, the hard-hitting topics tackled (football pun) in this book are so well-done and insightful. I don't usually like a sports element in romance (she says as though she's some sort of romance connoisseur), but I loved the way CTE and mental illness were handled here. Will definitely be picking up more from Alisha Rai soon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Terminal illness, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Death, Dementia, Grief, and Death of parent
itsmeyseniab's review against another edition
YIKES.
I knew right off the bat that I wasn't a fan of the writing style, but that was something that I was willing to overlook. However, I find these characters extremely unlikeable and bland all at the same time. The entire "conflict" of this story left a bad taste in my mouth as well... a family emergency is perfectly acceptable grounds to have been "ghosted"...
I knew right off the bat that I wasn't a fan of the writing style, but that was something that I was willing to overlook. However, I find these characters extremely unlikeable and bland all at the same time. The entire "conflict" of this story left a bad taste in my mouth as well... a family emergency is perfectly acceptable grounds to have been "ghosted"...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness and Terminal illness
Minor: Death