Sports Romance Archives

Only With You by E. Salvador | ARC Book Review

Oct 20, 2024

Only With You (The Knights #2) by E. Salvador

Pages: 588
Publish date: October 22, 2024
Publisher: –
ISBN: 9798990321922
Purchase: Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

Senior year should be easy. Unfortunately, it’s going to be anything but that for Julianna Sparks.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Julianna moves in with two of her friends, who also happen to be best friends with the guy she hates. But that’s not the only issue… she’s three weeks into school, and struggling to understand calculus II. Her need to make her parents proud has her willing to do anything, even if it means putting her pride aside to seek tutoring from Landon.

Landon Taylor’s goal of cruising to the end of his senior year falls apart when his best friends take in the girl he hates. Now he’s doing everything in his power to avoid her, and immediately turns her down when she asks him to tutor her. His plan would’ve worked out until an unfortunate circumstance forces him to agree.

Now they’re spending more time together than either one of them would’ve liked. But as time goes on, they realize that maybe being in each other’s company isn’t so bad after all. And that there might be more.

But will they acknowledge what it is before the semester is over, or will they let their mutual hatred stand in their way?

Only With You:

I received an earc of Only With You by E. Salvador in exchange for an honest review, this has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

I knew I would love this one even before I started reading, and I wasn’t wrong. What I love most about E. Salvador and this series so far is that it’s a fantastic combination of romance, heartbreak, wholesome, spicy, gut-wrenching, and will still make you smile. It’s one of those punch-in-the-guts books that makes you laugh out loud but also want to cry with the characters.

Only With You is a hate-to-love college romance that has basketball, music and lots of spice. Julianna is such a fantastic fmc. I liked that she was confident but then she also had her flaws and she was aware of them. And as the book goes on she becomes vulnerable and allows those around her to help her out. Landon is fun. I think that is a great way to explain him. But he is also so reserved. He needs his space, he needs quiet.

The thing is Julianna and Landon, hate each other. And the hate is strong. It’s been building up for years and now, now they are living so close to one another. She lives with some of his best friends. But there is a thin line between hate and love, between these two. And as they spend more time together, well let’s just say it gets a little spicy. (A lot spicy!)

There is a lot of emotional trauma that both Julianna and Landon have gone through, and they don’t realise how much this is truly affecting them. Until they start to lean on one another. I loved seeing them break down with each other. They weren’t fixing one another, but helping heal. And that hit. It was gorgeous.

The spice was hot, the romance was beautiful and I loved seeing the group of friends rally around each other. They are all there for one another, and I think things are about to get even more interesting. I have some thoughts about who might be with who. And I cannot wait to see it all unfold.

Only With You is another gem in this series. If you are looking for a college sports romance, that is emotional, spicy and funny, then this one is it.

Have you read Only With You by E. Salvador yet? What did you think of it? Are you planning on reading it? What about the first book in this series? I’ve also loved sports and college romances but recently I have been loving them again. What are some of the books you’ve been reading lately? Let’s chat!

Romance Recs: Favourite Sports Romances

May 23, 2020

A few weeks ago I shared some of my favourite MC Romances and today I thought it was time to share some of my favourite sports romances. This is probably the sub-genre that I’ve read the most in romance. There is a lot of sports romances in New Adult and that is what I read a lot before I moved into all romance. So over the years, I’ve read many books and series that include a sports romance. And today I’m sharing my favourites.

I love sports romances! It’s one of my favourite sub-genres of romance. I can’t even really pinpoint why, but I just do. I do watch a lot of sports in my everyday life. It’s something I’ve grown up doing and that might be why I’m drawn to it. There was a time when I fell into ice hockey romances and could not get out, still can’t. So a lot of the romances here are ice hockey, but in reality, I love reading all types of sports romance. Anyway, here are some of my favourite sports romances. Like always these are in no order.

The Year We Fell Down (The Ivy Years #1) by Sarina Bowen: I read this one nearly four years ago, and it still holds up to be one of my favourite romances ever! I just love so much about it. I love that it includes disability, friends to lovers and ice hockey. It’s such a good read and I could re-read it all the time. I also want to make a special mention of this whole series. If I could put every book on this list I would.

Getting Lucky Number Seven (Taking Shots #1) by Cindi Madsen: I think this had to be one of the first sports romances that I read. It’s when I first started to read New Adult and just feel in love with it. While it does have a few problems overall, it’s such an enjoyable read. Plus, it’s best friends to something more.

Catching Jordan (Hundred Oaks #1) by Miranda Kenneally: While this one is classed as “young adult” – I think this what drove me to read more sports romance. I first read this series back in 2013 and fell in love with everything. Each book in the series mostly includes some sort of sport and I love that each one is different. This one is fantastic and great for someone that reads YA but wants to slowly move into new adult and romance.

Edge Series by Jennifer Comeaux: Every time I watch something to do with ice skating, I want to re-read this series. And I always have so much fun when I do. This whole series is just so great. It’s a great way to get into sports romances but it still feels like a general romance. If you love ice skating especially pairs, pick anything by Jennifer up.

The Deal (Off-Campus #1) by Elle Kennedy: If you love sports romances and haven’t read this one – get on it. This series is just so much fun. This one features the trope of what I would call the unlikely couple and it’s fantastic. I love that we get to know not only the main protagonist but everyone else in their lives too.

Him (Him #1) by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy: I’ve spoken about this one from time to time, but this M/M sports romance gets to me every time. I love the relationship between Jamie and Wesley so much. It’s friends to lovers, second chance and everything in between. I also love the fact that two of my favourite sports romances authors came together.

The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata: I just finished this one this morning and I had such a lovely time. It’s a very slow-burning romance, very slow. But I enjoyed seeing that for once. It’s a big book, but it didn’t feel like that for me. This is my second Mariana Zapata book and I think that I enjoyed this one more.

Rookie Move (Brooklyn Bruisers #1) by Sarina Bowen: Of course there had to more Sarina Bowen on this list. I think this might be one of my favourite of hers. It’s a second chance romance that melted my heart. I adore Georgia and Leo together so much. Ah!

Play On (Lewis Creek #1) by Michelle Smith: I haven’t spoken about this one in a while, but I have so much love for this book and the series. It’s such a fantastic sports romance that isn’t just about sports but so much more. This is another great one that boards young adult and new adult and I love it. It has this sweet and beautiful romance that melted me.

And that is it for today’s post! Those are my favourite sports romances that I’ve read so far? What are yours? Do we share any that are the same? Do you have any recommendations?

Book Review : Covering All the Bases by Jody Holford

Jun 23, 2019

Covering All the Bases (For the Love of the Game #1) by Jody Holford

Pages: 200
Publish date: June 10th 2019
Publisher: Entangled: Bliss
ISBN: 9781640638037
Purchase: Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

Talk about a wild day… As if being summoned to the deathbed of a grandfather she didn’t know existed wasn’t enough––Isla Bennett meets the man of her dreams. Spends an amazing day playing tourist around Nashville with him. And then finds out she’s inherited the Nashville Slammers major league baseball team. Oh, and her new dream man? He’s the Slammers’ star power hitter. Isla just went from amazing first date to holy heck I’m your boss in the span of a day.

Liam Cruz can’t believe how refreshing it was to spend a day with someone who didn’t know his batting average, the size of his last contract, or heck, even that he’s a baseball player. Now Isla’s thrust into the spotlight, and though she’s more than capable of handling herself professionally, he takes it upon himself to teach her everything he can about the game that is his whole life. But they’ll have to keep it on the DL.

Because doing what’s best for the team means they can never be together––and that might be the toughest play of all.

Book name:

I received an e-arc of Covering All The Bases by Jody Holford from Entangled: Bliss in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book. I wasn’t expecting much from this book honestly.

I hadn’t really heard anything about Covering All The Bases before I picked it up. But the synopsis sounded really interesting. I love sports romance, it’s one of my romance weakness so I couldn’t really say no to it. And while I didn’t fall in love with the book, I did really enjoy it and will most likely read more in the series when they come out.

Covering All The Bases follows Isla Bennett as she embarks on a journey she never imagined. When a grandfather that she never knew existed wishes to see her before he dies, Isla rushes to a Nashville. Then she has an amazing day being shown around Nashville, by the man of her dreams Liam Cruz. Then everything changes because Isla inherited the Nashville Slammers major league baseball team. And Liam just so happens to be their star player. It was just another night for Liam Cruz, but then he meets Isla and something changes. It’s been a long time since someone didn’t know who he was – and he likes that. But now Isla is his boss and everything changes.

Lesly Juarez

I really enjoyed the concept of this book. The plot was so intriguing and grabbed me from the get-go. Not only was it about women in power, but about women in power in sport. I also loved the concept that Isla inherited the team from her grandfather, meets the man of her dream and now she is her boss. It’s so ridiculous but also so perfect.

I really enjoyed Isla as a protagonist. She was really easy to get along with from the start and I wanted to keep knowing more about her. Isla didn’t have a great way of growing up and her father really isn’t the best person out there. But I think Isla did pretty well for herself. The reader gets to really know Isla throughout Covering All The Bases. And as Isla finds out more about herself and grows, the reader grows with her. One of the things that really made me like Isla was that she felt honest. It’s a strange thing to say, but she felt real. I also loved that she had no clue about baseball – made everything that little more interesting.

Liam was also a really easy character to get along in Covering All The Bases. He was charming and just a really nice male protagonist. I loved that he was this big baseball start, but also seemed really down to earth. I liked that the reader got to know more about Liam as the novel goes on and as Isla gets to know him.

Moss

The romance in Covering All The Bases was very sweet. It was one of those romance that is easy to read and isn’t filled with angst. While Isla and Liam have a lot holding them back from being together. It wasn’t anything to do with communication or issues that would easily be resolved. The banter between Isla and Liam was really spot on and I loved reading it. It was really cool seeing women in power and Liam understanding why Isla had her worries. I loved that there was a little tension between the two. In saying all that I didn’t like how quick their relationship did move. I am a slow burn romance kind of girl and everything moved far too quickly for my liking. While Liam and Isla did know a good amount about each other, something just didn’t sit right with me, regarding time.

There are some crazy things that go on over the course of Covering All The Bases. Isla relationship with her father for one. Some of the things that happened between the two were really hard to read. He just made me so angry. And it wasn’t just him. I really hate how Isla was treated by some of the male figures throughout the novel.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Covering All The Bases by Jodi Holford. It’s a great easy, quick, romance read that put a smile on my face. I loved that it explored female empowerment and being a powerhouse boss. Isla and Liam were really cute together and I liked getting to know them. While I didn’t love Covering All The Bases, it was a great, simple read and I do want to read more books in this series. If you are looking for a sports romance that is a little different, then this is for you.