The Game Changers

“My nana used to say that broken people love the hardest because they appreciate the things that make their heart beat.”

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1. NOT MY ROMEO by Ilsa Madden-Mills

SYNOPSIS

We start off with a lie on Valentine’s Day.

My blind date isn’t the studious guy I expected: he’s a drop-dead gorgeous player with sinful amber eyes. Somehow we end up at his penthouse. I blame the gin and tonic.

The next day I learn he’s Jack Hawke—bad-boy professional quarterback with a murky past. The NDA he has me sign should be a warning that he isn’t a regular person. Please. I sign it Juliet Capulet, so goodbye, famous football player with abs of steel, and good luck tracking down this small-town librarian.

But Jack keeps showing up in places I least expect him. Just when I’m sure he’s gone, he waltzes into my community theater and wins the part of Romeo to my Juliet. How’s a plain, mostly innocent girl like me supposed to resist a man like him?

Is Jack my real Romeo… or will this gorgeous football player only break my heart?

BOOK REVIEW

After Dear Ava, I became more than willing to read everything written by Ilsa Madden-Mills. This time around, the author did a good job starting off a new series with a light-hearted novel full of humor, sexiness, and various quirks. Not My Romeo might not be the most outstanding book out there, but it was very well-balanced, sporting a cute couple with some amazing chemistry and covering a set of serious topics many of us can relate to.

The wolf has caught me, and I couldn’t be happier. I may not recognize this daring part of myself, but he is what I want right now. This moment. This bliss. This one night.

Not My Romeo followed the love story between Jack Hawke and Elena Riley, a smoking-hot football player with some serious trust issues and a sassy small-town librarian with a knack for smut haha. It all began on Valentine’s Day when fate decided to wake up and make its moves. Some Italian bread was devoured and sparks flew, followed by an exchange of mind-blowing orgasms, after which a pair of unique panties were stolen…

I should beg her to stay. I should. Because it feels like that—like I’d be willing to walk across hot coals just to get her to be with me.

Jack Hawke was a famously misunderstood quarterback for the Nashville Tigers. He had a really bad childhood, because of which it was hard for him to trust anybody, especially women. Besides some serious trust issues, Jack suffered severe anxiety around strangers. His social skills were also lacking, and as far as he was concerned, he only wanted to play and be the best in his game, and all the other stuff seemed to get in his way. Until Elena…

“Goddess. She’s the sexiest woman I’ve ever met, and she doesn’t even know it…”

Elena Riley was a completely out of the box sexy librarian, sassy and smart. She was more of an adopted baby pig kind of a girl who lived with her gay best friend in a very full of gossip small town. Elena was determined and realistic, sweet but quirky with a smidgen of lack of confidence. She was different from every other woman who Jack had crossed his path with. For him, this fascinating librarian was simply irresistible. There was something captivating about her, enigmatic even…

Sometimes, fate gives you a bad game, but in the end destiny straightens it out. And you win. You and I are going to win.

The chemistry between Elena and Jack was undeniable. I loved the dirty talk during the sexy times (it was hilarious, to be completely honest). Besides the physical aspect of their rather complicated relationship, the two brought the best in each other. While Jack kept being annoying and hesitant, Elena slowly but surely chipped his very spiky armor of distrust. And while Elena kept doubting her sexiness and worth, Jack did an amazing job both telling and showing how wrong she was.

That being said, Not My Romeo was a truly enjoyable read, but there was something missing to make the book perfect. I guess I should wait and see what else is coming our way further in the series with the established group of secondary characters. For the time being, go grab the first book in The Game Changers!

2. NOT MY MATCH by Ilsa Madden-Mills

SYNOPSIS

Homeless and heartbreakingly innocent, Giselle Riley walks into my penthouse and chaos follows.

I shouldn’t have invited the girl genius to live with me, but it’s clear she needs my help—not only for a place to lay her pretty blonde head but in finding real love, which she’s not going to get with the crazy men she picks up online.

Too bad she’s a twenty-four-year-old virgin and I’m a bad boy wide receiver. She’s off-limits for a hardcore player like me—and we’re just friends.

Instead, I’m her matchmaking service, no matter how jealous it makes me when I tag along on her dates. I can keep my self-control. Right? No way will I give in to everything inside me that dreams of a girl like her in my world. I may be the best wide receiver in the country, but how could I hold on to a girl like her?