Team Player by Julianna Keyes
Charleston Thrashers #1
Contemporary Romance
March 28, 2019

KINDLE * GOODREADS * AUTHOR WEBSITE

Don’t hate the player…

BOTTOM NINE
Gwen Scott wants to love her job with the Charleston Thrashers, the MLB team she’s worshiped since she was a kid, but she can’t. Hateful colleagues and mind-numbing work make her days unbearable—until her head for baseball gets her exclusive access to the Thrashers’ clubhouse and she comes face-to-face with Tyler Ashe, the team’s sexy shortstop and baseball’s most ineligible bachelor.

BASES LOADED
Ty has sworn off relationships in order to focus on his all-star career, but with his best friend gone, his team struggling, and the press blaming him for every loss, the most recognizable man in the majors is in a slump. Until he starts spending his time off the field with a stern blonde who recites baseball stats for kicks and sees through his arrogant façade.

TWO OUT
As the Thrashers’ season gets into full swing and Gwen adjusts to her new job, their fun banter and friendly teasing turns into stolen kisses and countless steamy nights. The team’s strict policy against player-staff relationships throws a curve ball into the mix, but they can’t hide from their feelings any more than the most famous man in baseball can hide from the spotlight…

I saved this gem of a sports romance for my Opening Day read and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve made in a long while. Astros baseball on the television and a harried, hard working PR assistant falling in love with a lonely short stop on my Kindle. Heaven.

This was such an easy read. I appreciated that the author brought her baseball knowledge A game. You can just tell she loves the game. Gwen and Ty had great chemistry, and despite their relationship being kept secret for most of the book (for reasons), the angst level wasn’t overwhelming. Oh, there was drama to be sure, mostly Ty screwing up and acting a fool, but it wasn’t rip your heart out of your chest and this couple always made up pretty quickly.

It wasn’t just the main protagonists and their relationship that kept me turning pages. I’m so interested in the rest of the players on the Thrashers. Especially Reed. I mean how do you not want to know more about a man who starts reading YA PNR in order to connect with his teenage daughter? And I want to find out more about Connor and his insider trading. What’s next for him? Does he come back to baseball? Ms. Keyes just whet my appetite and I can’t wait for more.

Final Grade- B