Declan Rhodes

I didn't enjoy this one nearly as much as the first book in the series. Until the last couple of pages, I didn't feel the couple at all.

I think the issue was that we didn't know the cause of Connor's anger issues until far too late in the story. We're told that he's dealt with them, but not shown it; on the first date, even that's thrown into question. It seems pretty reasonable for Reggie to question getting into a long-term relationship here. Meanwhile, when we do find out the original source, it's quite relatable! Most people get mad at the idea of a six-year-old being hurt.

I also didn't find the second breakup believable. The first one, the long-distance part was complicated by the anger issue and they hadn't gotten very emotionally invested yet, so I understand why the characters would just let the split go. But the second? A single clear-as-mud phone call and that's it? I guess as someone who was in a 3.5 year successful long-distance relationship I don't see why this can't work. It's not like Connor wouldn't still look for local work and find something in another few months, and in the meantime you can always arrange meeting up when the tour is near or make a few long weekends here and there.

This ruined the ending a bit too in my opinion; it kinda felt like Reggie was saying "Take this local job I've arranged for you or else it's over!"… (mere)

I'm a little torn on the rating for this one. It is truly a 3.5 star book for me, but I struggle with whether I round up or down since there aren't half stars.

I loved the character of Mo in Chase and Aaron's book ([b:A Brand New Ballgame|40384942|A Brand New Ballgame (Living Legends, #1)|Declan Rhodes|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1528157094s/40384942.jpg|62687744]), and I loved him here as well. He was so sweet and down to earth. This book is happening at the same time as the events of [b:A Brand New Ballgame|40384942|A Brand New Ballgame (Living Legends, #1)|Declan Rhodes|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1528157094s/40384942.jpg|62687744], so it was cool to see it from a different perspective, even if it was brief. Mo was a supportive friend, a great teammate, and a wonderful boyfriend. Jack is the son of one of Mo's biggest rivals. He was working on writing a book about his dad and interviewed Mo. There was a spark between them, and they connect again shortly thereafter and start a relationship. They had a great romance together, and I enjoyed reading their story.

Where I got lost a little was in the pacing of the story. I felt like a lot of it was told to me rather than me going along for the ride with the guys. It seemed like a lot of the relationship took place off page, so when big moments occurred or they finally got together, I felt like I was missing some of the link to make me connect to it. I also didn't think their big ultimate happiness moment at the end made a lot of sense Jack was adamant about not being out and when Mo came out Jack took off. Then all of a sudden, he comes home and Mo is planning interviews for them to do together. If Jack agreed to any of that or all of a sudden became comfortable with that, it happened off page, and I didn't feel like it was in character for Jack to all of a sudden sit back and say "sure why not".

The story was enjoyable, and I loved Mo, but I wish there was a bit more connection in the story for me as a reader. One thing I loved, though, was Jack's dad and his banter with Mo. That was awesome.

I am voluntarily reviewng and ARC provided by the author… (mere)

Chase was a baseball player, Aaron was his coach. I liked Chase and Aaron as characters, and I liked the story. It was a cool take on the coach/player dynamic. I felt a bit frustrated, however, at how much happened off the page that we were then expected to keep up with. Aaron and Chase were together one night, but when they reconnected again they had strong feelings for each other. Then we find out they had been together or been in touch in between what we had seen. That would explain some of their feelings, but we didn't experience that, we were just told about it. Another example was when Aaron found out about something significant near the end; it was really glossed over and we are then told (paraphrase) "and he told Chase". Also, Aaron was talking a lot about not being out, then it is that he is out but they want to keep their relationship separate, then all of a sudden they are doing an interview together. I would've loved to see them discuss that to give the readers a bit more connection to the guys and their future. There were a lot of opportunities for more emotional depth and discovery that I thought could make this story stronger. Also, their feelings were alluded to throughout, but then they would act in ways that made it seem like they weren't in it for the long haul (e.g., they would talk about marriage and a house on the beach, but then when Aaron gets fired, he takes off out of state and never even calls Chase until later).

As I said, I liked the story. It had a lot of positives (the secondary characters of Mo, Eric, Javier, and Harv, the baseball, Chase's career trajectory throughout). I just didn't love the flow. I wanted more togetherness, communication, and connection.

I am voluntarily reviewing an ARC received by the author… (mere)