Those Sporty Boys Though

Hey romance lovers!

How's everyone doing? I'm still as grumpy as ever, and the hot, rainy weather is certainly not helping my mood. I'm waiting for fall to be here already, but it's taking FOREVER. I think I may be finally out of the slump, though I've been reading VERY VERY slowly. I'm fine with it as long as I'm enjoying reading the books that I'm reading. After reading 100s of pages of school textbooks, it's nice to fall into something light and easy.

Anyways, so last week, I received Played by Jen Frederick and Bountiful by Sarina Bowen for review. You can bet your ass that I rushed to read both of them. 

Check out my quick thoughts on them below!

PLAYED by Jen Frederick [★★★★] 

I'm super in love with this series. After Elle Kennedy's Off-Campus series, this is one of my favorite NA sports romance series. It's got some swoony heroes, some awesome female leads, and romances that are realistic AND sexy. I've been anticipating Ty's book since the very beginning. I loved the glimpses we got of him in Sacked, and was desperate for his book. And it was everything that I wanted and so much more. It also had one of my favorite tropes, the friends to more romance, and I thought it was done really well here. I grew to really love Ty. Jen Frederick is good with character development, and she does such a fantastic job with Ty's character. I also liked Ara a lot, even though, I admit sometimes her unwillingness to go after what she wanted was a teensy bit frustrating. I appreciated that even though she was a famous artist's daughter, she wanted to pave her own way in the art scene. Their relationship is another thing I adored in Played. I loved the comfort level in their friendship, and I loved how devoted and sweet Ty was to her. There was also some very obvious attraction between the two, that are both unwilling to act on in the fear that it will ruin their relationship. Of course, before the end of the book, they can't resist but giving in, and I loved them even more as a couple than as friends. I think their friendship really solidified their bond, and made for a relationship with a great foundation. I also appreciated that the book was drama-free for the most part. Jen Frederick doesn't rely on over the top twists to separate her couples, which I really really love. I also loved seeing Knox again. He and Ty may be identical twins, but they could not be any different from each other. But their sibling bond is so great, I loved every scene/conversation between them. Played was another hit in the Gridiron series for me, and if you haven't checked out this football romance series yet, you should. 

BOUNTIFUL by Sarina Bowen[★★★1/2]

This was another book I was eagerly anticipating since I'm in love with this series. Though I can't say that Bountiful is my favorite book in the series, it's still an installment that I thoroughly enjoyed. The book starts off with the summer fling between the heroine Zara, and the red-headed love interest, Dave, who also happens to be a famous hockey player from Sarina Bowen's Brooklyn Bruisers series. It's steamy, with lots of chemistry, but both Zara and Dave know there's an end to their short relationship. Fast-foward a couple of months and Zara is pregnant with Dave's baby, and with no way of contacting him. Two years later, Dave is back, and is surprised to find out that Zara now has a nearly two year old red-headed daughter. I liked the idea of Dave and Zara together a lot, especially the second time around, but I also feel like we didn't get to see a strong emotional connection between the two. I would have loved to see the two of them getting to know each other a little better especially since they were reconnecting after two years. I did really love Dave's growing relationship with his cute daughter though. He is initially taken aback by it, and his reaction is not the best, but he makes an effort over the course of the book, and by the end, the little girl had him twisted around her chubby little finger. Zara was fantastic. I really admired her strength and her resilience. She's just badass! I also loved all the cameos from the Brooklyn Bruisers series as well as seeing some of the Shipleys again. All in all, this was a sweet and very steamy book (probably Sarina's steamiest book in the series), and I'm eager to find out if there will be more books.

UP NEXT

These are some books I'm planning on reading next. I already started the Lauren Layne book and I'm liking it a lot!

 

What are some of your recent romance reads? Anything good? Let me know in the comments below!